New Delhi: An 11-member fact-finding team consisting of representatives from various civil society organisations said that it has uncovered a “series of lies and misinformation” that was perpetrated by the state and police administration prior to the peaceful black flag protest, during the protest and after the brutal incident. It also called the role of the police ‘reprehensible’.
The team recently published a report of their investigation into the October 3 violence at Lakhimpur Kheri.
Three vehicles ploughed through a crowd of protesting farmers during the incident, killing four farmers and a journalist. As the vehicles fled, two BJP workers and a driver of one of the vehicles was killed, in apparent retaliatory violence.
The team consisted of individuals from organisations such as the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), the Association For Democratic Rights (AFDR) Punjab and the like which visited the area from October 28-30. There, they spoke to eyewitnesses, locals of the area, farmers’ families and consulted the videos of the incident circulating in the domain to formulate the report.
The full list of members of this fact-finding team and their affiliations is appended at the end of the article.
Timeline of the events
September 20, 2021: Farmers’ unions organised a mahapanchayat in UP Sitapur. Attended by 25,000-30,000 farmers, it was the largest such gathering seen in the region until then and Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait addressed the gathering. The report notes that the gathering did not go down well with the political powers and thus chooses to begin its timeline from this date.
September 25, 2021: At a gathering of BJP workers, Union minister of state for home Ajay Kumar Mishra ‘Teni’ makes the infamous speech where he says, “Meet me, it will only take two minutes to discipline you..” A video of the speech subsequently went viral on social media.
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UP coordinator of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) Tejinder Singh Virk took particular objection to Teni’s words and called for a protest to be held against him and UP deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya when the latter came to visit the region on October 3. The protest was meant to be a peaceful, ‘black flag’ protest at Tikunia.
October 2: The protest site is fixed near a helipad where the deputy CM is expected to land the next day. The UP police cordoned off the adjoining Tikunia bypass road in light of the arrangements.
Later in the day, an amended notification regarding the deputy CM’s visit is circulated in Lucknow which states that he would no longer be flying via helicopter to Lakhimpur from Lucknow but rather, will be making the journey by car. This information, however, is not conveyed to the farmers.
Amended notification as shown in the fact-finding committee’s report. Photo: Screengrab.
October 3: Since the Tikunia bypass was blocked, the farmers made their way to the protest site by foot, leaving their vehicles some 500 m down the narrow road.
At 9:30 am, the farmers begin broadcasting the protest on Facebook Live and a heavy police presence can be seen in the area.
At around 1:15 pm, the farmers, led by Virk began moving towards the helipad, waving their black flag peacefully, the report notes. A makeshift stage is created out of a tractor trolley.
Around this time, a group of police officers approach the farm leaders to negotiate some solutions to the situation since the farmers say that they are not leaving the site. The farmers and the police arrive at three solutions:
- The helicopter will not land at the helipad. Ajay Mishra has invited the deputy CM and other guests to a dangal (wrestling event) and they would travel there by car and avoid the route on which the protesting farmers were present.
- The farmers would not leave the protest site to march to the dangal venue or any other place. All 3,000 farmers agreed to remain within the 500 m stretch of road.
- The protest and the dangal will end at separate times so as to avoid any clash between the two parties.
While all these terms were discussed, the police never mentioned the prior change in the deputy CM’s travel plans to the farmers.
At 3 pm, after news comes in that the minister’s event has ended and all the dignitaries have left, the farmers decide to wind up their protest and “leisurely” make their way back to their vehicles. The report notes that 200-odd police officers are present at the scene.
It is at this point that the three-vehicle convoy comes speeding down the road, which was thought to be blocked. The three cars were a Thar SUV, a Fortuner and a Scorpio.
The cars plough through the protestors on the road. The first individual to be run over was 62-year-old farmer Nachhattar Singh who later succumbed to his injuries.
Collating eyewitness accounts and videos of the incident, the report notes that the Thar SUV was the first to plough into the protestors, after which it attempted to speed away but was blocked by a private bus emerging at the end of the road. The car thus swerved off the narrow road in an attempt to avoid collision with individuals still beneath its wheels, the report says.
The Fortuner was following close behind and to avoid crashing with the Thar, it too swerved and ploughed into more protests.
The Scorpio, according to eyewitnesses, slowed down before the crowd and was allowed to pass, moving slowly around the bus.
At the time, the report notes that gunshots could be heard and two unidentified men were seen fleeing from the Thar, their way cleared by the police. Eyewitness accounts detailed in the report say that as the vehicles were overturned to free the individuals trapped beneath them, they caught fire.
A vehicle torched after violence erupted in Lakhimpur Kheri. Photo: PTI.
The three members who were part of the convoy were, according to the report, recorded on camera by the farmers as saying that they had been handed over to the police alive.
“The police force took no immediate action to either prevent the incident, catch the perpetrators or help the victims in getting medical aid,” the report reads.
Those killed in the incident were farmers Nachhattar Singh (62), Daljit Singh (42), Gurvinder Singh (18) Lovepreet Singh (20), journalist Raman Kashyap, BJP workers Shyam Sundar Nishad and Shubham Mishra, Ashish Mishra’s driver Hari Om Mishra
At around 5 pm, borders of Lakhimpur Kheri and Lucknow were sealed, a complete internet shutdown was imposed (which wasn’t lifted until October 8) and Section 144 was imposed in the region.
Later, around 8 pm, the SKM called for nationwide protests outside the offices of district magistrates and an inquiry into the incident to be conducted by Supreme Court justices and not the UP police. They also called for action against Ajay Mishra and his son Ashish.
That night, Ajay Mishra gave an interview in which he accused the farmers of lynching the BJP workers, throwing stones at the convey and torching the vehicles. He went on to say that his son Ashish was at the dangal from 11 am and could not have possibly been at the protest site.
Ashish Mishra gave a telephonic interview to ABP News the same night in which he echoed his father’s claims that he was at the dangal. He, however, acknowledged that one of the cars in the convoy did indeed belong to him and that the car, along with the driver Hari Om Mishra, had been sent to the area to pick up some unspecified important persons.
October 4: Protests against the atrocities at Lakhimpur Kheri begin across nine districts of the state: Banda, Chitrakoot, Mahoba, Hamirpur, Fatehpur, Jalaun, Lalitpur, Shahjahanpur, Pilibhit and Gorakhpur.
At the same time, an increased presence of police officers and Shastra Seema Bal (SSB) members was observed in the region.
Ajay Mishra held a press conference that day in which he reiterated the narrative that it was the BJP workers who were lynched, calling the farmers “anti-national” and “anti-social” elements. He, again, mentioned that his son was at the dangal the whole time and said, “I will resign from my post if a single proof emerges against my son being on the spot where the incident took place (sic).”
Several political and farm leaders who attempted to visit the region were stopped or detained. The list included Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and her delegation, Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel, Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhjinder S. Randhawa, Haryana BKU chief Gurnam Singh Chaduni, former UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and more.
लखीमपुर की घटना बताती है कि भाजपा सरकार किसानों पर अत्याचार की किस हद तक जा सकती है।
लेकिन, हम किसानों की आवाज को दबने नहीं देंगे। भाजपा सरकार के किसान विरोधी मंसूबे कामयाब नहीं होने देंगे। pic.twitter.com/7NKbFhYlnl— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) October 4, 2021
— Bhupesh Baghel (@bhupeshbaghel) October 5, 2021
Ashish Mishra’s arrest and thereafter
Despite being named in the FIR filed the day of the incident, Ashish Mishra was only arrested on October 9 along with two others, Ashish Pandey and Luvkush. During his interrogation, the report claims that Ashish was unable to explain several aspects of the incident.
Witnesses at the dangal say he was not present at the event from 2-4 pm, the location from his phone put him closer to the protest site than he claimed and even the description of the driver provided by him was not accurate, according to the report.
On October 18, the Crime Branch arrested Sumit Jaiswal, Nandan Singh Bisht, Satya Prakash Tripathi and Shishupal. A licensed revolver was reportedly retrieved from Prakash and subsequently, the Hindustan Times reported that a rifle, a repeater gun and a pistol were recovered from Ashish Mishra, Ankit Das and Latif.
During the investigation of the fact-finding team, witnesses they spoke to (who had also submitted statements to the police) claimed that Ashish Mishra was in the Thar SUV that trampled the farmers, with some witnesses even saying that he was driving the car.
A separate witness claimed that Ashish Mishra was one of the men who fled the SUV and was protected by the police as he tried to escape, firing rounds from his weapon to ward off any farmer who tried to catch him.
In light of all these claims, the report says, “The role of the police must be thoroughly investigated around the entry and escape of the criminals from the scene of the crime.”
“The police must be held to account for permitting possession of legal weapons by those who have a criminal history,” the report further read.
Lakhimpur Fact Finding Report by The Wire on Scribd
Complicity of the police
The report squarely puts a significant portion of the blame on the police. Seeing as the protest was organised chiefly to send a message to the deputy CM, the police’s decision to withhold the information about his change in travel plans on two separate occasions – when the order was initially circulated and again when the police were negotiating terms with the farm leaders on the day of the incident – comes into question.
Further, the role of the police in opening up the blocked, 500 m road leading up to the protest site remains unclear. It could not be ascertained when the blocked road was reopened which eventually allowed the three speeding vehicles to mow down the protestors.
The report also questions how the brutal incident could take place in the presence of 200-odd police officers. Videos and eyewitness testimonies are cited to show that the police made no attempts to prevent the violence. In fact, witnesses present on the scene told the investigating team that when the two men fled the Thar SUV, the police actually formed a human barrier to facilitate their escape.
The Special Investigation Team attempt to recreate the sequence of events leading to the incident in Uttar Pradesh’s Tikonia village as part of their ongoing investigation, in Lakhimpur Kheri, October 14, 2021. Photo: PTI
The police were also chastised for not providing any medical assistance to the injured protestors. Farmers and local journalists present at the scene helped take injured people to the ill-equipped Primary Care Centre near the site.
The role of the police becomes more dubious when the question of the slain BJP workers is brought up. The report notes that the BJP workers who were eventually declared to have been killed in the incident were handed over to the police alive.
This fact was even corroborated by Ajay Mishra later in the month. The minister alleged that BJP worker Shyam Sundar Nishad was alive in an ambulance and was dragged out of it and killed. “The guilty cops will not be spared and the government will conduct a probe against them,” he had said.
This fact, coupled with the fact that driver Hari Om Mishra, who was killed and subsequently named as an accused in the FIR, causes the writers of the report to suspect a larger plot to exonerate Ashish from more grave charges.
The report calls the role of the police “reprehensible” and notes that “the role of police must be thoroughly investigated around the entry and escape of the criminals from the scene of the crime.“
The report also pulls up the police for its failure to provide medical aid to the injured protestors, noting that “crowd control protocol mandates that the police have arrangements to provide first aid and training to efficiently transport injured for medical treatment.”
With regards to the police’s failure to inform the farmers of the change in the deputy CM’s travel plans, the report says that this move allowed tensions to develop further in the region. Coupled with the status of the narrow, 500 m road and the ease with which the speeding vehicles were able to plough through the protestors, the report says, “The precision with which this happened points to pre-planning.”
Questioning the official narrative
The report accuses the administration of spinning a false narrative of “loopholes and trail of misleading information”. The portrayal of the farmers as “anti-national” elements even before the incident took and the subsequent attempts from both Ajay Mishra and his son Ashish to paint the incident as the “lynching of BJP workers” rather than violence committed against peaceful protesters are seen in the report as being a crafted narrative.
Moreover, the administration’s decision to impose Section 144 and block politicians, journalists and protestors from entering the area are described in the report as being not only “violation(s) of people’s rights” but also a “dubious act”.
“The arbitrary use of Section 144 and stopping the movement of people, farm leaders, press and representatives of political parties from reaching out to families work to the advantage of the culprits. This practice must be challenged and the arbitrary restrictions on assembly and movement must stop,” the report says.
The report further reads, “The practice of internet shutdown which the present regime is using with impunity must be called out. It works to silence the victims and allows the perpetrators to build their narrative in the public. This practice must be challenged.”
Why was Ashish’s car at the protest site?
Both Ashish and Ajay Mishra claimed that, while they were at the wrestling event, the former’s car was sent to the helipad to retrieve “important people” and bring them to the same event. Ajay Mishra even categorically stated that it was the deputy CM who was being picked up.
However, the aforementioned order regarding the change in the deputy CM’s travel plans was dated October 2; the deputy CM did not intend to fly to Lakhimpur.
These contradictory claims, coupled with the fact that eyewitnesses have claimed that they saw Ashish fleeing from one of the cars that ran over the protestors, causes the fact-finding team to categorically demand that this discrepancy be investigated further.
Indian Youth Congress members demand the immediate arrest of Ashish Mishra, accused in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, near Amit Shah’s residence in New Delhi, October 9, 2021. Photo: PTI/Kamal Singh
Ajay Mishra’s history
A section of the report is devoted to delving into the alleged sizeable criminal history of the Union minister. The list of allegations includes the murder of a political opponent in 2000 and the Allahabad high court’s subsequent failure to prosecute him; smuggling activities across the Nepal border; various instances of rioting, assault and criminal intimidation, the abduction of a Sikh man and subsequently parading him around naked in a village; illegal smuggling of sandalwood and foodgrains, all of which have been met with impunity considering his massive political clout in the region.
In light of this political power, the report notes that there is a large possibility that any investigation surrounding Ajay Mishra could be “tampered, manipulated in his favour and subverted to his and his party’s advantage.” As such, the report calls for the removal of the minister from his position in order to ensure an impartial investigation into his actions.
The fact-finding team’s report calls many facets of the Lakhimpur Kheri incident into question; the official narrative and attempts to protect Ashish Mishra from prosecution; the failure of the police to thwart the violence, provide medical aid to the injured and their supposed complicity in the entire incident; the government’s use of suppressive tactics like the imposition of Section 144 and internet shutdowns and many more issues that require further investigation.
Demands
The team demanded an impartial probe and strict action against the guilty, which is only possible if the minister is removed from his position. It highlighted some aspects:
1. Ajay Mishra Teni’s past and the unconditional power he enjoys in the current regime creates very fertile ground for the investigation to be tempered, manipulated in his favour and subverted to his and his party’s advantage.
2. For a fair investigation to happen, Ajay Mishra Teni must be divested of his ministerial position and the 120 CrPC complaint against him must be pursued.
3. The impunity of the state must be challenged through due process for which it is important that a free and impartial inquiry happens. To make it happen, Ajay Mishra must be removed from his position.
4. Those responsible for perpetuating an atmosphere of fear through their public and private actions must be identified and punished as per law.
5. The role of police must be thoroughly investigated around the entry and escape of the criminals from the scene of the crime.
6. The police must be held to account for permitting possession of legal weapons by those who have a criminal history.
7. The official investigation should bring under enquiry the factors that led to this gory incident and must identify the actors responsible so that such crimes are not repeated in the future. This entails investigating the use of communal politics by the political elite; the role of hate speech; political intimidation and, the consequences of not divesting of their power of the those who can influence the inquiry.
8. The practice of internet shutdown which the present regime is using with impunity must be called out. It works to silence the victims and allows the perpetrators to build their narrative in the public. This practice must be challenged.
9. The arbitrary use of Section 144 and stopping the movement of people, press and political actors needs immediate scrutiny from the executive and the judiciary. This practice must be challenged and the arbitrary restrictions on assembly and movement must stop.
10. Immediate steps must be initiated to address the shortcomings in the poor state infrastructure and health services that cost lives.
11. The state must protect all witnesses and allow them to depose and live lives without fear. It must protect the witnesses from pressure and intimidation from the powerful.
12. The truth about Shyam Sundar Nishad and other BJP workers’ death must be probed impartially so that the guilty don’t go scot-free and the incident is not blamed on the dead to save the powerful accused.
The 11 individuals who made up the fact-finding team are:
Jagmohan Singh, general secretary, Association For Democratic Rights, (AFDR) Punjab
Narbhinder, AFDR, Punjab
N.K. Jeet, AFDR, Punjab
Pritpal Singh, AFDR, Punjab
Seema Azad, People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL)
Gopal Sundarajan, Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights (CPRD), Tamil Nadu
Manu Akavoor, CPRD, Tamil Nadu
Sukhdev Hundal, AFDR, Haryana
Mohammed Faisal, Krantikari Lok Adhikar Sangathan, Uttar Pradesh
Kamlesh Parivartankami, Chhatra Sangthan, Uttar Pradesh
Navsharan Singh, Wwiter and activist, Delhi