Behror (Alwar): At least 12 men armed with weapons, including AK-47 rifles, stormed the Behror police station in Rajasthan’s Alwar district on 6 September and freed one of Haryana’s “most wanted” criminals, Vikram Gurjar alias Papla, who carried a reward of Rs 5 lakh on his head and was arrested just a day before. The men had come in three vehicles, and they fired nearly 50 rounds as they fled with Gurjar, a wanted criminal with several cases of murder and robbery against him.
The incident has not only left the Rajasthan Police embarrassed, but has also exposed their unpreparedness when faced with an unexpected challenge.
Following the incident, Director General of Police (DGP) Bhupendra Singh called a meeting Saturday where he pulled up the police officers concerned and directed them to be prepared for such challenges in future.
“This always happens. It’s not new, especially in this region. But that doesn’t mean we will ignore it,” Singh told ThePrint.
“Action will be taken against the erring policemen. Expect something soon,” the DGP said, hinting at the possibility of the suspension of Behror station house officer (SHO) Sugan Singh Rathore, who allegedly had a tip-off about the Gurjar gang’s plan — a charge he has vehemently denied.
A Special Operations Group (SOG) has been constituted to nab Gurjar and the gang members.
The dramatic turn of events
The armed gang of 15 members, after taking Gurjar with them, had driven some distance when one of their vehicles broke down, according to the police. They reportedly took over a parked pick-up van and travelled some more distance, before hijacking a Scorpio vehicle from a man at gunpoint and speeding off towards Haryana.
Officers at the Behror police station said they believed the gang had done a recce of the police station before carrying out the attack.
“Some cops were still asleep as they were on late-night duty the day before, while some were bathing and some were switching duty,” Ramjilal Choudhary, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Behror, told ThePrint.
The guard, with a self-loading rifle, at the entrance of the police station did not resist the gang, said a policeman. The CCTV footage, accessed by ThePrint, shows police personnel standing motionless in fear and not retaliating to the gang.
Another official, who did not wish to be named, told ThePrint that he had never experienced something as scary as this in his 32 years of service.
Even the eye-witnesses ThePrint spoke to said they were scared after hearing the gunshots.
A tea vendor, whose shop is located near the police station, said, “Everyone went inside their shops to take cover.”
“The smoke made us feel this wasn’t just any regular shooting inside the police station. We saw two vehicles zip past us and we realised what had happened,” said the vendor who did not want to be identified.
Prakash, who has a laundry shop in the area since 2001, said, “I am a heart patient so I immediately went inside (my shop) as the sound (of gunshots) itself was so scary.”
Shiv Shakti, a 55-year-old owner of a juice shop near the police station, said people in the area are still in shock after what happened that day.
Meanwhile, SHO Rathore, sitting in a room at the police station, said he was unnecessarily being made a scapegoat.
Pointing at bullet marks in the room, he said, “I fired thrice even though my life was at stake.” He even forwarded a WhatsApp message, defending himself. “Aamjan, media, janpartinidhiyon, department ko lagta me kayar, nikama, crupt (corrupt) hun to mere ko ek pal bhi behror me rahne ka hak nahi (If people, media, public representatives and police department think that I am corrupt, coward and worthless, then I don’t have any right to stay in Behror,” the message read.
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Gurjar’s arrest
Gurjar is part of a notorious criminal gang of Haryana. He is accused of killing a constable in Mahendragarh, and had several other murder cases registered against him.
The Behror police caught Gurjar last Thursday after they intercepted his vehicle during patrolling and recovered Rs 31.90 lakh from it. However, they mistook him for a rookie criminal, who identified himself as Sahil, said the police.
Sources said Gurjar was in Alwar to allegedly avenge the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party leader from Behror, Jasram Gurjar, in July.
Two accomplices of Gurjar — Vinod Swami and Kailash Chandra — were arrested Saturday evening and sent in five-day police remand. The police said they knew about the attack but were not part of the gang that stormed the police station.
Swami is a former village sarpanch and a history-sheeter, according to the police.
‘Caste-nexus’
Of the 25 policemen who were present when the incident occurred, eight are local residents and some belong to the Gurjar community, a member of the SOG said while talking to ThePrint.
Owing to a “caste nexus” predominant in Rajasthan, there are allegations that these Gurjar policemen were involved in the conspiracy, the officer said.
There are also allegations that when Gurjar was taken into custody, a policeman had informed a “middleman” who later arrived at the police station to negotiate his release.
The “deal”, however, failed when SHO Rathore said the cash recovered from Gurjar’s car was huge and that he could not be let off, sources said, adding that the attack appeared to have been planned after the “deal” fell through.
The police, meanwhile, said the gang members have been booked under sections 307 (attempt to murder), 147 (punishment for rioting), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the Indian Penal Code, and also under the Arms Act and the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.
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SOG formed, 50 police teams constituted to nab Gurjar
The Special Operations Group (SOG) constituted to nab Gurjar and his gang members is headed by Additional Director General (ADG) Anil Paliwal. Besides, 50 police teams have been set up across Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Rajasthan to trace the wanted criminal.
A senior police officer dealing with the case told ThePrint that the security of Behror and several other police stations across Alwar has been stepped up, and bullet-proof jackets and additional weapons, including AK-47 rifles, have been provided to policemen.
The police said 12 AK-47 rifles have been sent to Behror. They are also planning to put up tall iron structures outside Behror and other police stations in Alwar to prevent recurrence of such incidents.
The Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) visited the crime spot Saturday to take stock of the situation. An Emergency Response Team also arrived in Behror Sunday, besides several senior police officers who visited the crime spot.
“Gurjar’s call details are being scanned so that police can get in touch with his previous gang members to trace him,” said Superintendent of Police, Bhiwadi, Dr Tejpal Singh, who was present at the crime spot Sunday.
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Everyone would have got the resignation of Modi – luckily for him Rajasthan is being ruled by Congress at present ! Modi- must be very happy that BJP lost Rajasthan:₹