The then Samajwadi Party government pushed me to alter the meat sample that was seized from the crime scene in Akhlaq case, stated Subodh Kumar Singh. The shocking report was made by the slain police officer many months ago when the ‘Cobrapost team’ met up with him while investigating the series of lynchings across the country in the name of ‘cow protection’.
In a very serious interaction, that took place in a Vrindavan police station, Subodh Singh made many shocking statements on how the state government, led by Akhilesh Yadav, worked overtime to control the outcome of veterinary and FSL examinations.
It may also call to mind that Akhlaq was lynched to death whereas his younger son was badly injured, by an angry mob comprising villagers of his own village Bishara on the night of September 28, 2015, which broke into their house unexpectedly. Akhlaq was accused of lynching a cow-calf and consuming its meat. Singh was in charge of the Jarcha Police Station at that time. Going about his business, the officer made smart moves and made 10 arrests.
Later on, 18 arrests were made regarding the case. Just within 40 days before the inquest was done, the officer was switched to other location all of a sudden. Actually, the Akhilesh government was working privately to give the case a twist of its own by pressurizing officials. But Singh did not collapse under pressure that was put on him by the administrative machinery and hence he got his transfer.
In his brief interaction with Cobrapost, Singh made many more shocking claims. Talking about how he was asked to “change the meat”, the officer observed, “Nahi pressure toh political pressure toh kuch nahi tha political toh yah tha ki iss meat ko jo jab Samajwadi Party waali sarkaar thi wo yah chahti thi hum logon ko aur doctor ko bhi dawaab banaaya gaya ki is meat ko change kar diya jaaye … (No, there was political pressure. The Samajwadi Party government wanted us [the police] and the [veterinary] doctor to be pressurized to change the meat).”
Here, the police officer is recalling about the meat that his team had seized from the crime spot that disastrous night.
Pretending to have not understood what he said, we asked him once again what he was asked to do. “Meat ko change kar diya jaaye jo meat humne mauke se liya tha uski jageh meat plant kar diya jaaye …. Matlab buffalo ka humne toh mana kar diya ki hum nahi kar paayenge kyonki meat jo hai teen ek jo ghatnasthal se meat liya gaya tha uske teen jar bante hain ek thane mein rehta hai ek FSL chala jaata hai ek doctor ke paas chala jaata hai wo ja chuka tha agar hum change karte 201–218 ke mulzim hum banenge … issi wajeh se mera transfer bhi hua tha ([They] Wanted to get the meat changed. They wanted to plant the buffalo meat in place of the meat we had collected from the site of the incident. Actually, we had kept that meat in three jars. One was kept at the police station, the second was sent to the FSL and third was sent to the [veterinary’ doctor … for this reason I was transferred),” Singh explained in detail.
After disclosing the reason of his transfer, the officer made another statement. He said, “Asliyat yah hai ki doctor se report change karai gai thi … buffalo doctor se ye main bata raha hoon (The truth is the doctor was forced to change the report … the buffalo doctor, I am telling you this).” Please repeat it again, we did not understand you say, we told him.
“Doctor ne bhi report dee thi ki gaay ka hee meat hai … pratham drishtya jo report dee jaati hai … wo report gaay ke meat kee hee di thi (The doctor had also said in his report it was cow meat … the report which is given prima facie … that report said it was cow meat),” observed Singh. You mean the doctor from Dadari Government Veterinary Hospital, we asked him.
Yes, from Dadari, Singh said to reveal further, “Lekin doctor se report change karai gai maine change karne se manaa kar diya uski copy bhi mere paas hai (But the doctor was forced to change the report. I refused to change it. Its copy is still lying wi
th me).” You mean original copy of the report, we asked. Confirming, Singh told us more, “Original copy jismein doctor ne likha hai ki … the meat of cow … report jo usne change kiya usase pehle mere paas bhej dee thee DM jo Nagendra Pratap Singh DM thei unhone report uthakar mujhe wapi karaa dee maine wo report wapas kar dee lekin maine photocopy karwa lee doctot ne likh kar de diya tha ([Yes]Original copy where the vet doctor had written … the meat of cow … before changing the report he had sent me the same. Then DM Nagendra Pratap Singh gave me that report. I returned the report but I got it photocopied [before returning it]. The vet doctor had written it.”
All these secret manipulations were conducted at night. “Raat ko hua ki yahan bhi change karaaya gayaa meat. Lekin maine change karne se manaa kar diya (The meat was changed here during the night. But I refused to change the meat),” Singh informed. Telling us who did what, the officer said, “Ek SDM, ek CO, doctor, FSL Mathura bhi aaye the unhone meat ko dene se mana kar diya tha .. our sub-inspector bhi aaya tha (One SDM, one CO, doctor from FSL Mathura had also come.
They had refused to return the meat sample … one sub-inspector from our department had also come).” You mean the government wanted the meat to prove not of cow origin, we asked him. The officer said, “Haan gaay saabit na ho (Yes, it is not proved a cow).” Even then DGP spoke to him about this issue, as Singh said, “Unko bhi pata tha, humse bhee poochha tha DGP sahib ne ki …
tum ko kya laga prathm drishtya dekh ke khaal baraamad ho rahi bail kee khaal baraamad ho rahi hai safed … se barabar hota hai gaay ka hai yah meat. Teesre din change karwa rahe the 28 tareekh ke bajaye 31 tareekh (He too knew it. DGP sahib had also asked me … what you saw prima facie. We had seized the hide. Was it the hide of a bullock? White … makes it certain that this it cow meat only … they were asking me to change it on 31st after three days, instead of 28th).”
As all these revelations make it quite clear, the honest officer stood his ground. It is indeed heartbreaking and shameful to see such an upright officer like Singh to have been murdered in broad-day light by a murderous mob of so-called gau-rakshaks.
It is even shocking to know that secular government of the Samajwadi Party tried to manipulate a honest officer like Singh and penalise him with a transfer when he refused to agree. ‘Cobrapost’ made a call to Nagendra Pratap Singh, the then District Magistrate of Gautam Buddh Nagar, but he refused to talk about an issue related to the slain police officer.
Well, these revelations were all part of a hidden-camera investigation Cobrapost had exposed killings of innocent people by gau-rakshaks in the name of cow protection.
