Slain SIMI man's family seeks murder charge against MP home minister, DGP

Family of Maharashtra-born Khalid Ahmed Muchale, who was among the eight slain SIMI men, has approached police seeking to file a case of murder and criminal conspiracy against Madhya Pradesh home minister and director general of police besides the Bhopal jail officials for the alleged encounter.

Khalid's 61-year-old mother Mehmooda submitted a complaint to MIDC Police in Solapur on Thursday seeking action against MP home minister Bhupendra Singh and others alleging that her son was "murdered".

Khalid, a resident of Solapur was among the SIMI members, who were killed after they escaped from the Bhopal Central jail in a daring pre-dawn jail-break.

"We have submitted the complaint to MIDC police in Solapur and sought an FIR to be registered for murder, criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence," Khalid's mother told PTI from Solapur.

She said that although local police have not registered any case but ensured that the complaint application will be sent to Bhopal police.

She alleged that her son was to be released soon. "If he was about to be released, why will he risk fleeing from the jail," she said, and alleged that her son's murder was "pre-meditated".

Advocate Tahwar Khan Pathan, who accompanied Khalid's mother while handing over the complaint application said that initially the police were not ready to take it but later accepted it.

MIDC Police confirmed that they have received the complaint application and said they have already sent the copy to Bhopal police.

"Since, the case falls in Madhya Pradesh police jurisdiction, we have forwarded the application to them," said a police inspector, attached to MIDC Police station in Solapur.

The undertrial activists of the outlawed SIMI escaped from the central jail on the intervening night of October 30-31 after killing a head constable Ramashankar Yadav and were subsequently killed in an encounter on the outskirts of the city on October 31.

Since the encounter took place, conflicting versions from police and state Home Minister surfaced, leading to allegations that it might be fake.

A controversy also raged over the police action following the jail-break, after TV channels showed footage purportedly from the encounter site in which a policeman is seen pumping bullets into a man from close range after some unidentified person takes out what appears to be a knife said to be in a plastic cover and places it back.