Following the murder of two HPCL officials, authorities in Budaun, Uttar Pradesh, have demolished shops owned by the prime suspect, revealing a crackdown on illegal construction and encroachment on government land.
Key Points
- Shops belonging to Ajay Pratap Singh, the prime suspect in the HPCL officials' murder case, were demolished by authorities in Budaun.
- The demolitions were carried out because the shops were illegally constructed on government land, according to the district administration.
- Ajay Pratap Singh, a former vendor, is accused of murdering two HPCL officials after his termination from the company.
- Approximately 12 roadside shops, including those belonging to Singh and his uncle, were identified as illegal structures and demolished.
- Authorities are also investigating illegal electricity connections to the accused's family and plan to file a separate FIR.
The district administration in Uttar Pradesh's Budaun demolished shops belonging to the prime accused in the murder of two Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) officials, citing that the establishments were built on government land.
On March 12, two officials of HPCL plant in Sejni village -- Assistant General Manager Harshit Mishra (34) and General Manager Sudhir Kumar Gupta (58) -- were shot dead allegedly by Ajay Pratap Singh alias Ramu, a local who was earlier a vendor at the plant.
Gupta had recently terminated some employees and blacklisted vendors whose work was not satisfactory. Singh was among those removed. Since the termination, Singh had been upset with the general manager and had threatened him on several occasions.
Demolition of Illegal Structures
Dataganj Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Dharmendra Kumar Singh said that all encroachments made by Ajay Pratap Singh and others had been identified beforehand.
Notices were issued to the concerned individuals, granting them time to voluntarily remove the encroachments. However, the illegal structures were not removed even after the stipulated time had elapsed.
On Tuesday, the administration proceeded to remove the illegal structures using bulldozers.
He informed that approximately 12 roadside shops had been identified for demolition with about six shops situated on one side of the road and six on the other.
The SDM further clarified that among the demolished structures, six shops belonged to Ajay Pratap Singh while the remaining six belonged to his uncle, Rakesh Singh.
He added that a survey conducted by the Public Works Department (PWD) revealed that the shops had been constructed illegally on government land.
The SDM also mentioned that during the investigation, it came to light that another shop belonging to the accused had been built on barren land; this shop has since been vacated and sealed.
The electricity connections for the accused's family was also found to be illegal; and a team from the electricity department has been summoned to the site, he said, adding that a separate FIR will be lodged regarding this matter as well.
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