With the CJM court in Sambhal ordering that an FIR be lodged against former district circle officer and controversial cop Anuj Chaudhary and 11 other policemen in connection with the firing on a Muslim biscuit seller, the opposition has trained guns on the Sambhal police which has decided to approach the Allahabad High Court against the CJM court’s decision.
Chaudhary, who had grabbed headlines during his tenure as the circle officer of Sambhal when he had made some controversial remarks about the role of police during 2024 violence in Sambhal which had killed five persons. Arjun awardee Anuj Chaudhary has been a boxing champion from 1997 to 2014. Known for his fitness, Chaudhary who had joined the UP police under sports quota, had shot to limelight when he had told a news platform that police had the right to defend itself and that cops were not joining the police force to get killed.
As the statement went viral on social media, some social media users lauded Chaudhary for his remarks while some had criticised him. Chaudhary had also remarked that Muslims should avoid areas where Holi is being celebrated if they cannot accept colours as Holi came once in a year while the jummah (Friday) prayers come 52 times a year. After this statement, UP CM Yogi Adityanath had supported him saying that since Chaudhary had been a pehalwan (wrestler), he was accepted to talk like a pehalwan.
Now, over a year after the violence in Sambhal, the CJM court of Sambhal has ordered that an FIR be filed against Choudhary and 11 other police officers on a complaint from the father of Majroob Alam, a biscuit seller who had alleged that when he was passing near the Jama Masjid where Chaudhary along with 15-20 policemen were present at the spot and allegedly started firing on protesters when a court-mandated survey by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) was going on.
In his complaint to the court, Majroob Alam’s father Yameen alleged that when Majroob ran from the spot to save himself, he suffered two bullet injuries in his back while he suffered one gunshot in his hand. The court order in possession with TDG states that Yameen had alleged that none of the hospitals in Sambhal gave treatment to Majroob and he had to hide his son at his home for three days due to the fear of police. “I visited several hospitals in Moradabad and Aligarh but none of the hospitals got ready to admit Majroob saying that police had instructed them not to admit the victims of Sambhal violence at their facilities. Then, I visited a hospital in Meerut where we got Majroob treated by hiding his identity where Majroob was treated and the bullets were removed from his body,” Yameen had alleged in the complaint to the court.
In its order, CJM judge Vibhanshu Sudhir said that the complaint is accepted and Sambhal SHO is directed to lodge an FIR and conduct an investigation and inform the court about the same within seven days. However, soon after the details of the court order went public, Sambhal SP Krishna Kumar Bishnoi said that the police will approach the Allahabad High Court against the CJM court’s order as they are not satisfied with the order and the police will not lodge an FIR in the matter. He said that a judicial inquiry has been completed in the matter which had held the police action correct.
However, this has now sparked another police controversy with the Samajwadi Party and the Congress alleging that the state government is trying to save Anuj Chaudhary and other police officers. Alleging that the CM’s statement about Chaudhary was unconstitutional and had justified the communal mindset of the police, the UP Congress has alleged communalism of the police is now not limited to the personal behaviour but had taken an institutional form under the patronage of the government.