Police officer crushed to death by cattle smugglers in Jaunpur

A head constable promotee was killed after cattle-smugglers allegedly drove a pick-up van over him during a vehicle check near the Sarai Pokhta outpost in Jaunpur early on Friday.

Police said 56-year-old Triloki Tiwari and two constables were inspecting vehicles on the Kalichabag-Badlapadav route when they noticed a pick-up van loaded with cattle coming their way around 3.30 am. Tiwari signalled the vehicle to stop, but it picked up speed instead, running him down.

A policeman told HT on the condition of anonymity that Tiwari was thrown 10 metres into the air, suffering critical injuries in the process. As the constables rushed to his aid, the cattle smugglers drove away.

The officer was rushed to the district hospital, which referred him to a Varanasi medical institution. However, Tiwari succumbed on the way to the city.

Confirming the incident, additional superintendent of police (Jaunpur) Ramji Singh Yadav said: “A case has been registered at the Kotwali police station. Several teams have been deployed to trace the offenders.”

Station officer Kotwali Rambharose Kushwaha said, “A case has been registered against unidentified people under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code. We are trying to trace the persons who committed the crime. We will ensure that strict action is taken against them.”

Tiwari was recently promoted to the post of sub-inspector.

Another sub-inspector, Manoj Mishra, was murdered by cattle smugglers in Faridpur area of Bareilly district in September last year.