Bahraich violence: Dist. admin begins process to cancel arms licences of family of main accused

The district administration has begun the process of cancelling four arms licences of the family of Abdul Hameed, the main accused in the Bahraich violence case in which a youth named Ram Gopal Mishra was killed.

The administration has also started an investigation into the reasons that prevented an ambulance from reaching on time after Mishra was shot, a senior official said on Saturday.

District magistrate (DM) Monika Rani told PTI that instructions have been issued to cancel the arms licences of the family of Abdul Hameed, the main accused in the incident that took place in Maharajganj on 13 October.

"We have received information from media and other sources that his family has four arms licences, though the actual number of licensed weapons could not be confirmed yet. But in this regard, the in-charge officer of ordnance (city magistrate) has been asked to take full details and submit a report," she said.

She said previous records about when and who issued these arms licenses and on what basis are also being checked.

Mishra (22), a resident of Rehua Mansoor village, died after being shot during the violence during a Durga idol immersion procession in Maharajganj town under Hardi police station on 13 October. After this, tensions spread in Mahsi, Maharajganj and Bahraich city.

On the incident that took place in Maharajganj, Rani said, "In a viral video, Ram Gopal Mishra is seen being taken to the hospital on a bike, the authenticity of the video is being investigated."

It was also heard that when Mishra was shot, the ambulance could not come on time to take him, and the tehsildar present there refused to take the injured youth in his official vehicle. In this regard, Rani said the tehsildar has denied this allegation.

People are also claiming that the vehicle of a village head was parked at the spot, who refused to give it to for the injured Mishra. Rani said as soon as the complaint was received, the tehsildar was removed and attached to the district headquarters, adding that an investigation of the entire incident has begun. "We are also looking into the reasons for the ambulance not reaching the spot," she said.

According to Rani, the situation in the district is now completely normal and there is no tension in the Mahsi-Maharajganj area with banks, markets and other institutions starting to operate.

On Saturday, people were seen shopping for Diwali in the market. But as a precaution, an adequate police force is still deployed.