The Uttar Pradesh Police on Saturday released photographs of 18 of the 23 absconding accused in the violence in Bulandshahr earlier this month, which claimed two lives including that of a police officer who had once investigated the murder of Mohammad Akhlaq. The Bajrang Dal’s Bulandshahr convenor Yogesh Raj and local Bharatiya Janata Party Yuva Morcha President Shikhar Agarwal are on the list, The Hindu reported.
On December 3, violence broke out after residents had allegedly found carcasses of cattle in the fields of Mahaw village. At least 12 people have been arrested so far in connection with the violence.
Bulandshahr City Superintendent of Police Atul Srivastava said the photos were released on the basis of CCTV footage and videos. “And those who were not identified, we have released their photos and asked people to identify them and inform us,” he added.
Court notices were pasted on the doors of the 23 accused’s houses on Friday, The Indian Express reported. The notices warn that the accused’s property will be attached if they do not surrender in court.
However, one of the accused, Vishal Tyagi, told ANI on Saturday that his photo had been wrongly published in the list of absconding individuals. “Police mistook me for someone else and published my picture,” he claimed. “I have nothing to do with the incident. I live 40 km away from the place of the incident.”
“It was brought to our notice that a picture was wrongly published,” a police officer said. “We are investigating the matter, the picture will be retracted.”
A local court on Wednesday issued a non-bailable warrant against all the accused, including those absconding.
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