4 held for 'conspiring to kill' Uttarakhand minister Saurabh Bahuguna

Dehradun, October 11

Uttarakhand Police have arrested four people for allegedly conspiring to kill state Animal Husbandry Minister Saurabh Bahuguna, and stepped up security at his residence, officials said on Tuesday.

Those arrested include Hira Singh, the main accused who allegedly hatched the plan while in jail to kill the minister holding him responsible for him being imprisoned, and putting an end to his illegal mining activity, the officials said.

Saurabh, son of former chief minister Vijay Bahuguna, is among the youngest members of the Pushkar Singh Dhami cabinet.

Hira Singh, along with Satnam Singh alias Satta, Harbhajan Singh and Mohammad Aziz alias Guddu, is accused of plotting an attack on the minister, the officials said.

Circle Officer Om Prakash Sharma said the four were arrested on Monday from Sitarganj in Udham Singh Nagar district on the basis of a complaint lodged by Bahuguna’s representative and BJP leader Umashankar Dubey.

They were produced in a local court which sent them to judicial custody.

Circle Officer Sharma said Hira Singh paid Rs 5.7 lakh to Satnam Singh alias Satta for hiring a shooter, Mohammad Aziz alias Guddu, through Harbhajan after getting released on bail, he said.

Rs 2.7 lakh has been recovered from Guddu and Hira Singh’s car has been impounded.

Chief Minister Dhami held a meeting with DGP Ashok Kumar to assess the situation.

Security around the minister’s house in Dehradun has been stepped up with a metal detector installed at the entrance and police personnel deployed in plainclothes.