Ghazipur Cop Killing: 11 arrested after policeman Suresh Vats's murder by stone-pelting mob

At least 11 people have been arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police in connection with the killing of Ghazipur cop by a stone-pelting mob. In the second such incident of “mobocracy” in the BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, a police constable, Suresh Vats was killed in the stone-pelting by protesters. Vats was attacked when he was returning from his duty at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rally in Ghazipur. The police team was asked to control a mob allegedly from the Nishad community demanding reservation by blocking a highway. The police team was attacked with stones by the protesters when they tried to disperse them. He died on the spot. The police have registered the first information report (FIR) against 32 people and detained several others for questioning.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has announced a compensation of Rs 40 lakh for the wife of the constable. "CM Yogi Adityanath has taken cognizance of the unfortunate death of Constable Suresh Vats in Ghazipur in a stone-pelting incident," the chief minister office said.

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The Opposition Congress slammed the Uttar Pradesh government over the death, alleging that in Yogi Adityanath's "jungle rule" neither the people are safe, nor the police. Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala claimed: "In Adityanath's grand jungle rule, neither the people were safe, nor the police." "Today in Ghazipur after Modi ji's rally, a mob mercilessly killed police constable Suresh Vats," he tweeted. "Democracy in BJP rule=mobocracy," he added.

Meanwhile, son of the deceased policeman expressed his anguish towards the department for not being able to protect "one of their own". "Police are not being able to protect their own. What can we expect from them? What will we do with compensation now? Earlier, a similar incident had taken place in Bulandshahr," VP Singh, son of Suresh Vats, said.

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On December 3, a mob of some 400 people rampaged through a village in Bulandshahr district apparently after cow carcasses were found in a jungle nearby. During the violence, police inspector Subodh Kumar Singh and a 20-year-old man Sumit Kumar died of gunshot wounds.