New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh police arrested six people in Meerut on Sunday for allegedly trying to "avenge" the death of 22-year-old Bhim Army activist Sachin Walia, who was shot dead in nearby Saharanpur on Wednesday.
Police have taken the six Bhim Army supporters into custody after having questioned them.
ADG (Meerut Zone) Prashant Kumar said police have arrested Meerut residents Rahul, Deepak, Satvir and Ravindra and Modinagar residents Satpal and Bunty.
"After the incidents on May 9, when Bhim Army District President Kamal Walia's brother was killed, they (the arrested accused) wanted to make a new gang and do something to avenge it. They were planning a big violent act. When we learnt that this was being planned, we made teams to gather more information about this. When we arrested them and checked their messages on social media platforms and call details, our suspicion was confirmed," the ADG said.
He added that Rahul and Nitin were the two ringleaders of this revenge plot. He said, "During the interrogation, Rahul and Nitin said they were hurt by the death of Sachin Walia in Saharanpur. They confessed they started sending messages to 14-15 of their friends and started to create a feeling of animosity among them. They said they were planning to incite caste violence in the region. They even started to arrange for illegal weapons and vehicles."
The incident took place on May 9, Maharana Pratap Jayanti, which was also the first anniversary of the 2017 Saharanpur riots.
In the run up to this year's Jayanti, several Rajput outfits had demanded permission to celebrate the event. Bhim Army had, in turn, demanded that permission be denied to Rajput outfits since it could lead to a breakdown of law and order. As a compromise, the administration only gave permission to a gathering of 200 people. But despite heavy deployment of the RAF, PAC and civil police, a violent incident could not be prevented. The distrust of the state machinery deepens further, said Bhim Army leaders, when one takes into account the fact that one of the outfits at the forefront of the Maharana Pratap Jayanti celebrations was the Hindu Yuva Vahini - an outfit that owes allegiance to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Around 300 meters from Saharanpur's Maharana Pratap Bhavan, where the celebration was held, lies the Dalit dominated village of Ramnagar. Kamal Walia's house is 500 meters from the venue. The facts of the case state that Sachin Walia, the local media in charge of the Bhim Army, was killed after a gunshot between the upper lip and nose around noon. He was rushed to the hospital and declared "brought dead". But beyond this, there is little consensus.
It isn't just the manner of his death that is in doubt. Even the location is under question. According to police sources, Sachin accidently shot himself in the house, after which he was taken to the hospital. The blood trail, said a source, was leading from his house to the main road. But Robin Gautam said Sachin was shot some 200 meters from the house.
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