Five days on, Kanpur don Vikas Dubey remains elusive even as 40 teams of Uttar Pradesh police are sweating out to catch the mastermind of Friday’s bloodbath in which eight of their colleagues were killed.
Meanwhile, several photographs emerged on social media platforms in which Dubey and his aide Jai Bajpayi could be spotted with senior political leaders and bureaucrats and top police officials. The revelations put the Yogi government on defensive mode.
Late Tuesday evening, the government was forced to remove IPS officer and DIG of Special Task Force Anant Deo Tiwari who was handling the probe against Dubey. Mr Tiwari has been sent to a less significant post in PAS, Moradabad.
He stands accused of trashing the slain cop Devendra Kumar Mishra’s report against Dubey submitted in March. Although no case has been registered against him or any other cop. Although, 10 cops from Chaubepur station have been suspended for allegedly having nexus with the don.
Vikas Dubey’s photo with Law Minister Brajesh Pathak was particularly talk of town. Pathak had already denied any links with Dubey. His photos with BJP MP Ashok Rawat from Mishrikh (Sitapur) and BJP MP from Akbarpur Devendra Bhole and samajwadi party leader Satish Nigam also did rounds.
Dubey’s aide and business manager Jai Bajpayi’s several photos along with STF DOG Anant Deo Tiwari went viral on Tuesday.
Jai Bajpayi’s purported photographs with UP’s Home and Information Secretary and most powerful babu Awanish Awasthi also came out.
Bajpayi allegedly owns 15 bungalows and a dozen flats. “He was just a printing press operator in Kanpur and earned mere Rs4,000 a month seven years ago. He came in contact with Dubey and then his fate changed”, local reporters say.
Cops claimed to have seized Jai’s Audi car which was allegedly used by a BJP leader, Vikas Dubey and a comedian. “Jai claims to have several businesses including second hand luxury sales. He also claimed that he knew Vikas Dubey briefly.
On Monday, two videos had gone viral in which Dubey had claimed how two BJP MLAs from Kanpur saved him from police’s ire in 2017. Although both had denied the charge and called it a conspiracy.
With such a clout and political patronage, many fear that Dubey might never be caught.
200 cops under scanner, total 10 suspended
Over 200 policemen have come under the scanner in the case. Cops from the Chaubepur police station along with several other stations are believed to have a nexus with Dubey.
