UP: 'Wanted' Criminal Involved In Sultanpur Robbery Shot Dead In Encounter; Akhilesh Links Him To BJP

Sultanpur Robbery: A wanted criminal was killed in an encounter with the police on Thursday for his involvement in a robbery worth Rs 1.5 crore at a jewellery store in Uttar Pradesh's Sultanpur.

Giving details about the robbery, police said that Mangesh Yadav was carrying a reward of Rs 1 lakh on his arrest. He, along with four others, had robbed the store in Thatheri Bazar on August 28.

The officials further said that three other accused in the case—Sachin, Pushpendra, and Tribhuvan—are in police custody. According to police, Yadav was killed in the encounter with the special task force of the Uttar Pradesh Police at around 3.30 am in Mishirpur Puraini village. Last month, Bharat Jewelers in Sultanpur was robbed of Rs 1.5 crore. This encounter took place on the Kotwali Dehat Hanumangunj bypass.

Following the encounter, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav raised questions on the action taken by the police and dubbed it a fake encounter. He said Mangesh was killed because of his caste and his links to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

Akhilesh Yadav wrote on X: "It seems that the ruling party had connections with the people involved in the Sultanpur robbery. That is why before the fake encounter, the 'main accused' was contacted and made to surrender. Other accused were shot only in their legs and the killing was based on 'caste'."

"When the main accused has surrendered, all the looted goods should be returned and the government should pay compensation separately because the mental trauma caused by such incidents takes a lot of time to recover from, which leads to loss of business, which should be compensated by the government. Fake encounters turn the protector into a predator. The solution is not fake encounters, but real law and order. BJP rule is the elixir of criminals. Till the public pressure and anger does not reach its peak, the work of sharing in the loot continues and when it seems that the public will surround them, then fake encounters are done as a superficial balm. The public understands how some people are saved and how others are trapped," he further stated.

लगता है सुल्तानपुर की डकैती में शामिल लोगों से सत्ता पक्ष का गहरा संपर्क था, इसीलिए तो नक़ली एनकाउंटर से पहले ‘मुख्य आरोपी’ से संपर्क साधकर सरेंडर करा दिया गया और अन्य सपक्षीय लोगों के पैरों पर सिर्फ़ दिखावटी गोली मारी गयी और ‘जात’ देखकर जान ली गयी।

जब मुख्य आरोपी ने सरेंडर कर… — Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) September 5, 2024

According to reports, 124 criminals have been shot dead in different encounters in UP in the last few years. Out of the total criminals killed, 45 were from minority communities; 11 were Brahmins and eight were Yadavs; and 58 were from Thakur, Vaisya, and the SC/ST community.

(With PTI Inputs)