UP Police Comes Out Clean In The Vikas Dubey Encounter Case

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• A judicial committee constituted to examine the encounter of gangster Vikas Dubey has found the encounter to be valid and not fake.
• The report clarifies that the police shot the gangster in an act of self-defense and that the injuries of the accused were a result of the events described by the police.
• The Commission also reported that out of all the people who claimed the encounter to be fake, not a single person came before the committee to testify.

INTRODUCTION

A Judicial Committee constituted by the Supreme Court to look into the role of the police in the encounter of gangster Vikas Dubey has reported that the encounter was genuine and that the police officers shot the gangster in an act of self-defense after the accused started firing at the police party while attempting an escape from the police escort. The committee also found that the police and other state government officials had a role in the rise of the gangster and that they had helped him on various occasions, either directly or indirectly.

FACTS LEADING UP TO THE ENCOUNTER

Vikas Dubey, was a low-key gangster operating in the city of Kanpur, who shot to fame in 2001, after he gunned down Mr. Santosh Shukla, who had the rank of a minister of state in the then BJP government of Uttar Pradesh, inside a police station. After that incident, he was considered as a strongman of the area, had friends in high places, and was even linked to the major political parties of the region, mainly the Samajwadi Party, and the Bahujan Samaj Party. He carried out his criminal activities openly and the police hardly took any action against him. Even if he was caught and tried, he was often let out easily as he was charged under insignificant provisions and therefore, was let out on bail. He had more than 60 criminal cases against him, including eight of murder, nine of attempt to murder, two under NDPS Act, seven under the Gangsters Act, six under Goonda Act, three under the Arms Act, apart from various other charges like causing grevious hurt, intentional insult, disturbing the peace of the region and so on.

In the midnight of July 2-July 3, 2020, a team of almost 40 police officials went to raid Dubey’s house in Bikru village of Kanpur region, but poor planning, lack of implementation, and the parallel activities of some traitors marred the operation. What followed was a mayhem: 8 police officers, including a Deputy Superintendent of the Police were killed in an ambush with the associates of the gangster, with the remaining party forced to retreat in order to ensure their survival. This incident fueled a chain of events, involving a series of encounters, eventually leading up to the encounter of the kingpin. A Special Task Force (STF) was constituted to nab Dubey and his associates which conducted a series of raids and encounters, killing some of the important associates, but the gangster was elusive of police custody.

On 9th July, 2020, the gangster was arrested from Ujjain with the help of Madhya Pradesh Police, who were tipped off by someone that the gangster was present in the Mahakal Temple. The local police captured him and handed him over to the team of U.P. Police, with the country hearing the famous words “Mai Vikas Dubey hu Kanpur waala”, and watching the slap he received after it. The gangster was arranged to be transported via road to Kanpur, where he had to face a long-due trial.

THE ENCOUNTER

In the morning of 10th June, the police cavalcade suffered some problems due to heavy rains, and the car carrying the gangster lost contact with the others. In the heavy rain with very little visibility, the driver of the car had to apply sudden brakes when some stray cattle crossed the road, and as a result, the car overturned, rendering the passengers injured and unconscious for some time. Sensing it to be an opportunity to escape, the gangster took the gun of one of the police officers and opened the back door of the car and fled. Despite the repeated warnings, he didn’t stop, and started firing at the police, with one bullet hitting the officer. The police, in an act of self-defense, fired back at the accused, killing him on the spot. This marked the end of a three-decade long criminal career filled with notoriety, but gave rise to a series of speculations and conjectures, with some calling it a fake-encounter.

APPOINTMENT OF THE COMMISSION

The encounter aroused a lot of speculation, with demands of a probe into the ‘suspicious’ role of the police officers involved in the encounter. The pleas reached the Supreme Court as well, and in a writ petition demanding probe into the matter with the encounter being violative of the fundamental rights of the accused, and on 22nd July, 2020, the Court ordered the formation of a three-member judicial committee, headed by former judge of the Supreme Court, Justice B.S. Chauhan, to probe the encounter, along with the deaths of 8 police officers in the raid at Dubey’s house. The other members of the committee were Justice Sashi Kant Agarwal, a former judge of the Allahabad High Court and former DGP of UP Police, Mr. K L Gupta. The committee was entrusted with the responsibilities of finding the authenticity of the encounter and other related incidences.

The Committee interrogated various officials, witnesses, as well as people who could have had information about the encounter and other activities of the gangster. The Committee took almost a year and submitted its 823-page report to the state government and the Supreme Court in April, 2021.

On 19th August, 2021, the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs of the Government of Uttar Pradesh, Mr. Suresh Khanna, tabled the report in the Assembly for the consideration of the House.

FINDINGS OF THE COMMISSION

The Commission, during the course of its investigation, interacted with a number of people from both sides. In the report, the commission reported some startling findings, some of which are noted as under:

i. The report laid down that out of all the persons who claimed the encounter to be fake, no one turned up before the commission. Even the wife of the gangster, who filed an affidavit in the Court stating that the encounter was fake, did not present herself before the commission when she was asked to appear before the commission.

ii. The Commission examined the medical examination report prepared after the post-mortem of the deceased gangster. Dr. RS Mishra, one of the members of the panel of doctors, reported that the injuries on the body of the gangster could have been the result of the incidents narrated by the police.

iii. The Commission also assessed that the injuries suffered by the police officials could not have been self-inflicted, and that they were the consequence of the accident as detailed by the police.

iv. The Commission also found that the rise of Vikas Dubey as a gangster was largely facilitated by the indolent attitude of the law-enforcement agencies to effectively prosecute the gangster, as majority of the police officers of the area, along with the politicians had some vested interests in keeping Dubey out of bars.

v. The police officers always charged Dubey under lenient provisions and stricter provisions were omitted before filing of the chargesheet. Due to such lenient provisions, he frequently got out on bail. The bail secured by him was not even objected to by the government, which helped him stay out of jail and continue to expand his criminal empire.

vi. The raid that resulted in the deaths of police officers was also poorly planned. While a large party had gone to raid the premises, more than half of them did not have any weapon to defend themselves or use them if the situation so desired; they had only sticks (lathis) to defend themselves. Further, no member of the police party was wearing a bullet-proof jacket when they knew that they could face a shootout from the opposite party. The police party failed to gauge the actual strength of the gang which led to the mishap.

vii. It was also discovered by the Committee that one of the officers of the Chaubeypur Police Station, which undertook the raid had tipped the gang about it. As a result, Dubey and his gang were ready with arms and ammunition, and had made necessary arrangements to tackle the police.

On the basis of its findings, the Committee recommended action against all those who were involved in aiding Vikas Dubey and his gang, while clearing U.P. Police of all the charges of killing Dubey in an orchestrated set of events.

SELF-ANALYSIS

From the start of the chain of events i.e the raid and the martyrdom of 8 police officials, one thing was clear, that this time around, no stone would be left unturned in bringing the gangster to justice, even if it meant resorting to unconventional means. It was not just U.P. Police, but Rajasthan Police, Madhya Pradesh Police as well, which was involved in nabbing the gangster. This common effort should have been encouraged and praised by all the sections of the public. But what we saw was just the opposite. Different segments of the population, including some media houses, used social media and other mediums of mass media to spread conjectures with regards to the encounter, with some going to the extent of calling the encounter fake and placing the blame on police itself. In a free democracy, the people have a right to question the government under Article 19(1)(a), the same should be done on the basis of taking stock of the entire situation into consideration, and not just on the basis of fictional scenarios.

Even now, these particular sections of the society will continue to criticize the government, by using the word ‘could’ used in the statement of the medical officer that the injuries on the accused could have been caused by the events described by the police, with a new assumption that could there be any other cause of the injuries. This particular section has made this whole incident a suspense thriller movie when it should have been plainly considered for what it was: shots fired by the police in their self-defence which led to the death of the accused.

A lot of talk is made about the Fundamental Rights of such criminals who are killed in encounters stating that their right to life was infringed etc. While such fundamental rights are available to every individual without any discrimination, including criminals, a question should be asked about the fundamental rights of the people who suffered by the hands of such criminals. Do they not deserve justice? Do they not deserve a speedy trial? If there is overwhelming evidence to prove the guilt of the accused, with the knowledge of the fact that if the trial proceeds in a fair manner, the accused would be given a death penalty anyway. So, if the ultimate outcome of the judicial process is a death penalty, why there takes place so much of a hue and cry when such an instance happens, and instead of applauding the police, we continue to criticize them. A lot needs to go in to change this mindset. Let’s hope that this report would pacify the souls of the deceased and give a fitting reply to all the conjectures being circulated till now.

It should be understood that no criminal becomes a larger-than-life figure without the support of the government or the authorities. There have been numerous instances where some small-time criminal was supported by the government to carry out its unlawful tasks. A common instance also took place that after some time, the government loses its control over the criminal and he burns the hands of the government itself. It is only at that point of time when the government wakes up from its slumber and nab the accused, but till then, a lot of damage already takes place. Therefore, the assistance given to the gangster by the government authorities should not come as a surprise to anyone who is familiar with the working of the system.

CONCLUSION

After going through the report, it can be said that the police officers have been exonerated from all the charges and its stance has been vindicated, if for now at least. While the report may be challenged if there is substance to support such objection, it seems highly unlikely. Therefore, it can be said that Vikas Dubey was killed in an act of self-defence by the police and that it was not a pre-meditated murder.