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Ex-UP cop, who challenged Yogi Adityanath, arrested in suicide case
A former UP cop, who challenged CM Adityanath, has been arrested on charges of abetment to suicide.

Ex-UP cop, who challenged Yogi Adityanath, arrested in suicide case

By Sagar
Aug 28, 2021
12:54 pm

What's the story

Amitabh Thakur, a former senior Uttar Pradesh police officer, was arrested on Friday in Lucknow in an abetment of suicide case. The action against him came shortly after Thakur announced the name of his proposed political party that he plans to field in the next state Assembly elections. He has been sent to judicial custody until September 9, reports say.

Details

'Won't go unless you show me the FIR'

A video of Thakur's forceful arrest has gone viral on social media. In that clip, the former cop was seen being shoved into a police jeep outside his residence in Lucknow even as he resisted the arrest. "I will not go unless you show me a copy of the FIR," Thakur was heard saying. He also called the arrest "illegal."

Twitter Post

Here is the video of the arrest

Case

Thakur named by a woman who set herself ablaze

Police said they found evidence during a preliminary probe that implicated Thakur. He is named in a complaint by a 24-year-old woman, who died at a Delhi hospital earlier this week. The woman and her male friend had set themselves on fire outside the Supreme Court on August 16. In 2019, she had accused BSP MP from UP, Atul Rai, of raping her.

Information

Woman accused Thakur and others of helping Rai

In a Facebook video made by the woman and her friend before attempting suicide, she had named several officials, including Thakur, saying they allegedly helped Rai, the rape-accused politician, in harassing her with a police case.

Service

Thakur was forced to retire earlier this year

In March this year, Thakur was forced by the Union Home Ministry to take early retirement over "non-performance." He was "not found fit to be retained" in the service, according to the order. Earlier, he was suspended for several months from service in July 2015 under the Samajwadi Party (SP) government, days after he accused former Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav of threatening him.

Background

Thakur says he would contest polls against the CM

Thakur's arrest came after he announced the name of his proposed political outfit, Adhikar Sena. A known critic of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government, he says he would contest the upcoming polls from wherever the CM contests. "Adityanath took many undemocratic, improper, suppressive, harassing, and discriminatory steps during his tenure as Chief Minister," his wife, an RTI activist, said, according to PTI news agency.