Court Orders Case Against Police Personnel Over Encounter With Robbery Suspect

The District Court of Prayagraj has ordered the registration of a case against twelve police personnel, including the in-charge of the Special Operations Group (SOG) and the Charwa police station in-charge, following an encounter with Vijay Kumar Soni, a robbery suspect.

The case stems from a petition filed by Anju Devi, the mother of the deceased suspect Vijay Kumar Soni, residing in Hanumanganj, Paitha police station, Koraon. Devi’s application, submitted to the Chief Judicial Magistrate under Section 156(3), alleged that on September 10, 2023, Charwa police station in-charge Vinod Kumar Singh and SOG in-charge Siddharth Singh, accompanied by other officers, forcibly took her son from their home with the intent to kill him. The petition further claimed that on September 12, 2023, police shot Vijay in the shoulder during a staged recovery of stolen goods. He was admitted to Swaroop Rani Hospital, where he died on September 21.

Robbery Incident

In response to the petition, the court directed the police to register a case and conduct an investigation.According to the police, the encounter occurred when four suspects involved in a robbery of a jeweler near Tika Ka Purwa village clashed with law enforcement. Police confronted the suspects, who had stolen Rs 11,000, a bag of silver, gold jewelry, and a mobile phone, in Gungwa Ki Bagh. During the shootout, two suspects sustained injuries, and a bullet struck the bulletproof jacket of the SOG in-charge. The injured robbers then received treatment at Swaroop Rani Hospital.

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The incident began when robbers targeted Anoop Kumar Soni, a jewelry businessman from Samsapur village, on September 8, 2023. The robbery, which involved three men on an Apache motorcycle, led to a police investigation. Using CCTV footage, the police identified the suspects and traced them to a location where the encounter took place. The police recovered the stolen items, including jewelry, weapons, and cash, and arrested the suspects.

The police have registered multiple cases against Vijay Kumar Soni, Ashish Nishad, and Rahul Pasi, including charges of robbery and theft. The court’s order to investigate the encounter highlights ongoing concerns about police conduct and the handling of suspects.