18 U'khand cops convicted in fake encounter case

Nearly five years after an MBA graduate was gunned down in a fake encounter in a jungle in Dehradun, a Delhi court on Friday convicted 18 Uttarakhand police personnel, including 7 of them face charge of murder.

Ten others were convicted on the related charges of criminal conspiracy, kidnapping and killing of the 22-year-old Ghaziabad resident Ranbir Singh, who had gone to Dehradun to take up a job in July 2009.

One policeman was let off after conviction as he had already served jail term for a lesser offence. Special CBI Judge J P S Malik rejected the theory of Uttarakhand police that Ranvir, who had graduated in MBA from Meerut University, was riding on a bike along with two others and had snatched a revolver from a policeman while they were stopped for checking in view of the President’s visit on July 3, 2009. Arguments on the quantum of punishment will be heard on Saturday.

Those convicted for murder are sub-inspectors Santosh Kumar Jaiswal, Gopal Dutt Bhatt (SHO), Rajesh Bisht, Neeraj Kumar, Nitin Chauhan, Chander Mohan Singh Rawat and constable Ajit Singh.

“Accused 1 to 7 (Santosh, Gopal, Rajesh, Neeraj, Nitin, Rawat and Ajit) are held guilty and convicted for substantive offence punishable under section 302 (murder) of the IPC read with section 120B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC and for substantive offence punishable under section 364 (kidnapping to murder) of IPC read with section 120B of IPC,” the judge said.

Except Jaspal Singh Gosain, all other 17 police officials were convicted for the offence of conspiring to kidnap and murder Ranbir. 

Apart from Santosh, Gopal, Rajesh, Neeraj, Nitin, Chander Mohan and Ajit, the other ten convicts are constables Satbir Singh, Sunil Saini, Chander Pal, Saurabh Nautiyal, Nagender Rathi, Vikas Chander Baluni, Sanjay Rawat and Manoj Kumar and drivers Mohan Singh Rana and Inderbhan Singh.

The court convicted accused Gosain for the offence of a public servant framing incorrect record with an intention to save a person from punishment (section 218 IPC) but released him on the period already undergone behind bars. He was acquitted of all the other charges.

Two of Ranvir's friend were arrested later and are facing trial in a separate case of robbing in Uttarakhand.