Lucknow: A Pilibhit official who accused a Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) functionary of allegedly threatening her and demanding extortion money was transferred to the Lucknow headquarters on Wednesday evening following reports of political pressure.
The transfer came after days of high drama in Uttar Pradesh’s Pilibhit district as VHP functionaries took on the local administration over the arrest of their regional in-charge, Prince Gaur, for allegedly threatening the Additional District Magistrate (Finance and Revenue) Ritu Punia.
Punia was transferred a day after a local court granted bail to Gaur, who had earlier filed a complaint with Bareilly Division Commissioner Bhupendra S. Chaudhary against the ADM, accusing her of imposing excessive stamp duty and asking for money for allotments in a housing colony. However, the ADM denied the accusations and clarified that she had no role in it.
Gaur was arrested on 8 November after Punia’s complaint, accusing him of threatening her and demanding extortion money.
According to the 6 November FIR accessed by ThePrint, Punia alleged that Gaur was involved in purchasing land under the names of his deceased relatives and that he was running a gang engaged in extortion and fraud.
Punia also expressed concerns for her safety, fearing a possible attack. The ADM alleged that Prince Gaur had tried to extort money from her by exerting psychological pressure and filing a false complaint to damage her reputation. She also claimed that Gaur could plan an attack on her through his network.
Protest warnings
Following Gaur’s arrest on Saturday, the VHP and RSS warned the administration of protests.
Several VHP functionaries from neighbouring districts rushed to Pilibhit, and senior state VHP leaders, along with local BJP leaders, demanded that the superintendent of police re-examine the witnesses.
After a detailed inquiry, Investigating Officer Smanatish Kumar dropped several charges due to insufficient evidence.
Satish Kumar, after reviewing the case, dropped several sections from the FIR and downgraded one of the non-bailable charges to a bailable offence on Monday before submitting his report to the court.
The court of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Mangal Dev Singh amended the judicial remand of Gaur in line with a revised FIR on Tuesday, which originally carried stringent BNS sections, some non-bailable and punishable with life imprisonment.
Gaur’s lawyer, Ashwani Agnihotri, said, “The court granted bail upon submission of two sureties and a personal bond of Rs 20,000, as the original FIR filed on the ADM’s written complaint to the SP invoked BNS sections 132, 336(3), 338, 340(2), 308(5), and 351(2). The initial remand was based on these charges, including non-bailable sections 338 and 308(5). After the investigating officer diluted section 308(5) to 308(4), making it bailable, and removed section 338.”
Section 132 deals with assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from the discharge of their duty; Section 336(3) pertains to forgery with the intent to cheat; Section 338 relates to forgery of documents; and 340(2) covers dishonest use of documents.
The other sections cited were 308(5), which covers offences linked to false documents, and 351(2) (subsection (2), which deals with the punishment for criminal intimidation.
Meanwhile, the VHP and the local unit of the BJP continue to press for action against Punia.
Deepak Agarwal, a senior BJP leader in Pilibhit, told ThePrint, “They arrested the VHP’s regional in-charge based solely on an illogical complaint. What was Gaur’s fault, that he filed a complaint? What was wrong with that?”
“We had received several complaints from locals about corruption involving the concerned official, so we sent a letter to the Commissioner. But instead of acting on it, action was taken against the complainant. It’s shocking. We will raise this issue with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. We want a strict action against that officer,” he added.
Local VHP functionary Devendra Singh said, “These officials are out of control and tarnishing the government’s image. Now, even filing a complaint against them has become difficult, as they’ve started lodging FIRs against our senior leaders. Who is protecting them? This issue needs to be addressed.”
ThePrint contacted Punia by call for a comment, but did not receive a response. This report will be updated if and when she responds.
(Edited by Sugita Katyal)