Raebareli lynching case: Key accused shot at in police encounter, held

The key accused in the lynching of a Dalit man on October 2 in Raebareli was arrested on Friday after he was shot at and injured in an encounter, police said.

With this, the total number of arrests in the case has risen to 12. Searches are on for 10-15 more unidentified suspects involved in the case, police officials said.

Hariom Valmiki, a resident of Fatehpur district, was on his way to his in-laws’ home in Nai Basti, Unchahar, when villagers mistook him for a thief and beat him to death.

“The key accused, Deepak Agrahari, was intercepted by police near Ganga Katri in the Dalmau Kotwali area. When pursued by the SOG (special operations group), Unchahar, and Dalmau police, he fired at the team. In retaliatory action, police fired, injuring him in the leg,” said Additional Superintendent of Police Sanjiv Kumar Sinha.

He was immediately taken to a local health centre for treatment, Sinha added.

Police had announced a reward of Rs 25,000 for the arrest of the key accused in the case, which led to a political furore with the opposition Congress and Samajwadi Party attacking the BJP government over the law and order situation in the state as well as crimes against Dalits.

BJP leaders dismissed the charges, saying the opposition only wanted to malign Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s government, which has transformed the state over the last eight years.

Five policemen, two of them sub-inspectors, have been suspended for dereliction of duty over the matter, according to officials.