Interpol may help CBI catch cop

Senior IPS officer A K Jain faces non-bailable warrant, carries Rs 10 lakh reward

In yet another embarrassment for absconding Additional Director General of Rajasthan Police A K Jain, CBI is contemplating moving the Interpol for issuance of a Red Corner Notice against him in connection with a fake encounter of a liquor smuggler.

Already facing a non-bailable warrant with the CBI declaring him as a proclaimed offender and also announcing a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh leading to his arrest, the central probe agency was moving for issuance of Red Corner Notice against Jain, a 1978 batch IPS officer, amidst reports suggesting that he had fled to Singapore, official sources said.

The Ministry of External Affairs has already revoked his passport at the request of the CBI. Jain has been named by the CBI in its chargesheet filed on June 4 last year accusing him of allegedly killing a local liquor smuggler Dara Singh in 2006 when he was heading the Special Operations Group of Rajasthan Police.

The agency was preparing a case against him to be sent to Interpol headquarters in Lyon for issuance of a Red Corner Notice against him, the sources said. This is for the first time in the history of the inception of Indian Police Service that such a senior police officer has been declared as a proclaimed offender.

The CBI had earlier announced a cash reward of  Rs 10 lakh to anyone leading to the arrest of a serving but absconding Jain.

The CBI, in its chargesheet, had alleged that Dara Singh, a liquor smuggler, was taken into illegal custody by the SOG officials from Jaipur Airport and was taken to a lonely place near Amber where he was kept hostage till October 23, 2006 after he was killed in a planned manner.

“The circumstantial evidence shows clearly that Dara was murdered in cold blood by SOG personnel and the same was duly monitored by ADG Police A K Jain, SP SOG A Ponnuchammi and Additional SP Arshad Ali along with other officials and during this entire period Rajendra Rathore (a sitting BJP MLA) was on telephonic touch with Jain, ADGP,” the chargesheet said.

Police had claimed that Dara Singh was killed while fleeing from its custody. The CBI alleged there was an animosity over supporting rival gangs of liquor smugglers between Rathore and Dara Singh, a criminal and a bootlegger operating in Rajasthan and Haryana who was facing several cases including those of attempt to murder and smuggling.

“There were two rival liquor mafias in Churu and Jhunjhunu districts of Rajasthan. One was headed by Sumer Singh Fagediya and included Vijendra Singh, alias Tilaia, and Dara Singh,” the chargesheet stated.