Lakhimpur Kheri (UP): Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish, arrested for his alleged role in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, was Friday remanded in police custody for two days. It was for the second time that Ashish Mishra was remanded in police custody by Lakhimpur Kheri’s Chief Judicial Magistrate Chinta Ram.
Besides, Mishra, CJM Ram also sent three other accused in the case – Ankit Das, Shekhar Bharti and Latif – to police custody, acceding to the prosecution’s request for their police remand. The two-day police remand for the four, starting from 5.00pm Friday, will end at the same time on Sunday.
After his arrest October 9, the son of Union MoS (Home) was first remanded to police custody October 11 with the remand period starting October 12 and ending October 15. After the expiry of his first remand period, he had been sent back to the Lakhimpur Jail under judicial custody.
“The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing into the Lakhimpur Kheri violence had approached the CJM’s court here again requesting police custody of Ashish Mishra alias Monu and three others – Ankit Das, Shekhar Bharti and Latif,” Special Prosecution Officer SP Yadav informed Friday.
“After hearing the arguments from the prosecution and defence counsel, the court remanded the four in police custody from October 22 to 24 for their custodial interrogation,” Yadav added.
While remanding the four in police custody, the court allowed their lawyers to watch their questioning from a distance without interfering with the investigation. The court also asked the police to get the accused medically examination at the start and the end of their remand period.
The court had earlier Thursday remanded four other accused – Sumit Jaiswal, Satya Prakash Tripathi alias Satyam, Nandan Singh Bisht and Shishu Pal – in police custody for three days. Accordingly, the police remand of all seven accused will end on October 24 evening.
In the FIR lodged at the Tikonia police station in Lakhimpur Kheri district following the October 3 violence there in which eight people, including four farmers, were killed, Ashish Mishra figures as the prime accused besides 10-15 other unidentified, unmade persons.
The violence was triggered after an SUV of BJP supporters’ convoy had alleged ploughed into a crowd of farmers protesting against the planned visit of Union MoS (Home) Mishra along with UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya there, leaving four people in the crowd dead. In the ensuing violence, two BJP supporters, an SUV driver and a freelance journalist were killed.