Amid the ongoing encounter spree in Uttar Pradesh, a senior police officer was caught advising a history-sheeter on how to avoid being gunned down in a police encounter on tape.
This not only exposes the nexus between the police and the criminals, but also lends credence to the Opposition's charge that many of the encounters were "fake".
The cop, who was the station house officer (SHO) of a police station in UP's Jhansi district, has been suspended and a probe has been launched, the officials said on Saturday.
In the audio tape, which went viral on social networking sites, the SHO, identified as Sunil Singh, could be heard telling Lekhraj Singh Yadav, a dreaded criminal, who faced 60 cases, including those of murder and kidnapping, to speak to two local BJP leaders to "manage" his possible encounter.
The SHO is heard telling Yadav that he was on top of the list of the criminals for encounter.
"You (Yadav) are the most fit for encounter," he is heard telling Yadav.
As Yadav requests the SHO to "help" him, the latter expressed his helplessness but gave advice on how to avoid the encounter.
"Try to understand our situation... we cannot do anything... meet Sanjay Dubey and Rajiv Singh Paricha to manage the encounter," the officer is heard telling Yadav. Dubey is the Jhansi district president while Rajiv Singh is the local BJP MLA.
Incidentally, a police team had reportedly been engaged in a gun battle with Yadav on Friday, from which he managed to escape.
"We have ordered a thorough probe into the matter... stern action will be taken against the officer if he is found guilty," said a senior district police official in Jhansi.
Around 50 criminals had been killed across the state in the past few months, while hundreds of others surrendered.
