Ranchi: The post-mortem report of two people who were killed in Ranchi on June 10 found no bullets in their bodies. The bullets reportedly pierced through Mudassir and Sahil’s bodies.
The two allegedly died after police had opened fire in Ranchi to quell protests by thousands of Muslims who were protesting against now suspended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nupur Sharma’s allegedly offensive remarks on Prophet Muhammad.
Earlier in their application to the police, Mudassir’s family had claimed that fire was opened from the temple premises. The family members and few eyewitnesses had alleged the presence of Bhairo (Bhairav) Singh – one of the known history-sheeter and Hindutva leader of the locality, and other Hindutva activists Shashi Sharad, Karan and Sonu Singh within the temple premises during the protests.
As per regional media reports, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed by senior superintendent of police (SSP) Ranchi Surendra Kumar Jha to investigate the matter has already given a clean-chit to Bhairo Singh.
According to their investigation, Bhairo Singh’s mobile phone was in a different location at the time of the protests. It added that the flashes that could be seen in the viral videos at the windows of the temple were not firing shots, rather those were flashes from the camera of a man who was clicking photos of the protests in daylight.
Mudassir’s uncle, Mohammad Shahid Ayyubi, in his Facebook post on June 18 rejected the investigation reports. He has called for a judicial inquiry and said that he hardly has any faith on any investigation that was conducted by the “same people who were responsible for the firing” that led to their son’s death.
However, while speaking to The Wire, Ranchi SSP Jha said, “I have not seen the report yet. It may be a media report, media trial. But I will only be able to comment when I see the report myself.” It must be noted that the SIT was formed besides a two-member high-level committee formed by the government on June 11.
The investigation has now been transferred to the crime investigation department (CID). When asked the reason for transferring the case to the CID, Jha said, “It is to carry the investigation in a better and proper way. It is a special agency, so the case has been transferred to the CID.”
Denying comments on the post-mortem report, he added, “The matter is now with the CID, therefore, I am not entitled to comment on this.”
It has been nearly a month since the Ranchi violence took place, however, the police has still not registered a first information report (FIR) on the family’s complaint. The family has decided to file a petition in the Ranchi high court.
Massive violence erupted in Ranchi on June 10 during protests over suspended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nupur Sharma and expelled party leader Naveen Kumar Jindal’s controversial remarks on Prophet Muhammed.
Ayyubi told The Wire, “I have been receiving calls from Hindpidi thana for a couple of days. They asked me to take the family for CID interrogation. While you are not registering my FIR, you are expecting me to cooperate with you in the investigation?” Mudassir’s parents clearly said that they would only meet the CID officials if their FIR is registered.
Speaking about the post-mortem reports, he said, “We haven’t seen the reports yet, and they would not even give them to us. But I got to know from the doctors that no bullet was found in the Mudassir and Sahil’s post-mortem. However, apart from the two of them, there were at least 12-13 people who had survived bullet injuries. So, it is now the government’s responsibility to find out who fired the shots – the police or the public.”
Also read: ED May Take Action Against Prophet Remark, Agnipath Protesters; Seeks Documents From UP Police
PIL in Jharkhand HC
Meanwhile, one Pankaj Yadav had filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Jharkhand high court, seeking a probe by the National Investigating Agency (NIA) into the case.
While hearing the petition on June 17, the bench of Chief Justice Ravi Ranjan and Sujit Narayan Prasad demanded an explanation from the government on the incident. The bench asked the government to submit a report comprising intelligence inputs, claims about the attacks on temple, number of casualties and injuries, number of shots fired and measures taken to contain the violence.
The court also inquired about the absence of tear gas, water cannon and rubber bullets.
The case will be next heard on July 8.
Abhik Bhattacharya, a Doctoral Fellow at Ambedkar University, Delhi, writes on Muslims in Jharkhand.
Arshad Raza Khan is admin of social media page Muslims of Ranchi.
Swati Shikha is a development sector worker and freelance journalist who writes for The Times of India, TwoCircles.Net, etc.
