Amethi self-immolation: 3 cops suspended; 4 including Cong leader booked for ”criminal conspiracy”

PTI, Jul 18, 2020, 4:01 PM IST

Amethi/Lucknow: The Amethi police has suspended three policemen after a woman from the district and her daughter set themselves on fire outside the chief minister’s office in Lucknow on Friday alleging inaction in a land dispute case, officials said.

The Lucknow police, however, said the women were instigated by Congress leader Anoop Patel to set themselves on fire as part of a “criminal conspiracy” and a case has been filed against him along with three others.

According to Lucknow civil hospital authorities, the woman sustained 90 per cent burns and is on life support, while her daughter is stable.

“Three policemen including the in-charge SHO of Jamo police station in Amethi have been suspended. The matter is being probed by the additional superintendent of police and action will be taken once the report comes,” Amethi Superintendent of Police Khyati Garg said on Saturday.

No suicide note was recovered from Safia or her daughter Gudia, she said.

Garg and Amethi District Magistrate Arun Kumar said Safia (55) had a dispute with her neighbour over a drain and the two had even exchanged blows in the past.

Safia and her daughter set themselves on fire outside Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath”s office in the state capital around 5:40 pm on Friday, police said.

The police personnel posted there swung into action when they saw the women engulfed in flames and rescued them. The two were taken to the civil hospital for treatment, they said.

A video of the incident went viral on social media.

Dr Ashutosh Dubey, medical superintendent of Shyama Prasad Mookerji Civil Hospital, Lucknow, said, “The mother has sustained 90 per cent burns and is in a serious condition. Her daughter sustained 15 per cent burns and is stable. The mother has been put on life support.”

Lucknow Police Commissioner Sujeet Pandey said prima facie it appears that the incident was part of a conspiracy.

“It is a criminal conspiracy as part of which some people instigated them (Safia and her daughter). A case has been registered against four people – Aasma, Sultan, Kadir Khan (Amethi district president of AIMIM) and Anoop Patel (former Congress spokesperson) – in this regard,” he said.

The women were told to come to Lucknow and try to set themselves on fire so that their grievances can be highlighted and the dispute resolved, he said.

Pandey said, “We have evidence to show that these women went to the UP Congress office and met Anoop Patel.”

A reporter in Lucknow was contacted and asked to highlight the issue. The reporter has also admitted to this, he said.

“Anoop Patel clearly instigated them to make an effort to set themselves afire so that their matter could be heard,” he said.