October 2016 Bhopal encounter

Eight undertrial prisoners of Bhopal Central Jail were killed in an encounter on 31 October 2016.[1] They had allegedly escaped from the high security prison in the wee hours of the night.[2] The prisoners were suspected terrorists of the Students' Islamic Movement of India.[3]

Police version

According to the Madhya Pradesh police, the undertrials had escaped from the prison using bed sheets and wooden logs, after allegedly killing a jail security guard using spoons and plates.[4]

Staged encounter

Various audio tapes and videos have emerged that the encounter killings could be staged.[5] Leaked police control room audio clips possibly indicate that that the operation could have been staged and that there were orders from the top to kill all of the prisoners. According to the a tape police officers were angry over the killing of one of their fellow officers during the prison break. The tape also suggests that police were concerned over repeated escapes by the prisoners. It is speculated that during their last prison break a killed a guard was killed however this is not confirmed. A leaked low quality video appears to show an officer shooting an injured Escapee laying with fellow escapees. Senior officials praised the guards that participated in the encounter.[6]

Responses

The kin of the killed prisoners have come out accusing the police of staging the encounter.[7] Zulekha Bee accused that her brother was already threatened to be killed in a fake encounter by the jail authorities.[8]

Pervez Alam, the lawyer of seven killed prisoners, said that "It is a fake encounter, a cold-blooded murder. It was pre-planned murder and I believe they did not escape the jail, but they were made to flee by the police".[9]

The Shiv Sena mouth piece 'Saamna' argued that the killing were justified even if it was 'staged encounter'.[10]

References
  1. "SIMI activists' jailbreak: Video shows cop shooting at inmate on ground; in another, a talk of talks". The Indian Express. 1 November 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  2. Sunny, Shiv; Singh, Vijaita (31 October 2016). "8 SIMI men flee jail, killed in 'encounter' near Bhopal". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  3. "Bhopal jailbreak: Questions raised over police killings". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  4. Desk, Internet (31 October 2016). "SIMI activists' encounter: what we know so far". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  5. "SIMI activists' jailbreak: Video shows cop shooting at inmate on ground; in another, a talk of talks". The Indian Express. 1 November 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  6. "SIMI encounter: MP cops call it 'farzee' in these audio clips". CatchNews.com. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  7. Sunny, Shiv (3 November 2016). "It's no encounter, say SIMI man's kin". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  8. Sunny, Shiv (3 November 2016). "It's no encounter, say SIMI man's kin". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  9. "Bhopal jailbreak: Questions raised over police killings". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  10. "Saamna justifies killing of SIMI activists 'even if it was staged' - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
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