24 Men Accused of Violence in Panchayat Polls 20 Years Ago- Sentenced to Life Imprisonment

Key Takeaways 

• A court in the city of Bahraich, Uttar Pradesh awarded life sentence to 24 men accused of causing violence 20 years ago in panchayat polls.
• Out of the 30 initially accused, 6 men died in the last 20 years. Cases on them have been dropped.
• The incident had occurred in the year 2000, when all the accused disrupted the polls as they came armed, and caused the death of one man and injuries to several others.
• Panchayat polls in the region are speculated to be held in the upcoming months of April/May 

The Brutal Incident 

• As per a report by the Free Press Journal, all 30 accused had assailed a polling booth in Haraiyya Dolkua village on June 14^th 2000 where the panchayat elections were taking place.
• The accused initially tried to tamper with the ballot boxes and participated in other illegal practices to alter the poll results such as adding counterfeit votes.
• These men bore bombs and other weapons including firearms. When they were opposed by others present on site, they began firing and attacking everyone and tried to loot the ballot boxes.
• As a result of their violence, one man named Ramesh Tiwari died and several others received gunshot injuries.
• Cases were filed against all the 30 accused under Sections 147, 148, 302/149, 307/149, 323, 171 of the IPC, after a complaint was filed by Ramesh Tiwari’s brother Kaushal Tiwari.
• As per a statement by Government Counsel Pramod Kumar Singh, initially, the accused were arrested and sent to jail. After few months, all of them obtained bail in the case

The long-overdue judgement

• The Additional Sessions Judge (sixth) Manoj Kumar Mishra-II, after hearing the conclusive argument from the defence and the prosecution held all the accused guilty, after which they were taken into custody.
• “Later, in the day the court sentenced all the accused to life imprisonment”, as per a statement made by District Government Counsel, Bahraich, Sant Pratap Singh.
• The case has been dropped against the 6 of of the 30 accused who died, stated Government Counsel Pramod Kumar Singh.

The Aftermath

• The trial was ongoing in a local court in Bahraich for 20 years, which recently concluded.
• The judgment has been given just few weeks prior to the upcoming panchayat polls in Uttar Pradesh which are speculated to be for April-May.
• Several incidents of violence during panchayat polls have been reported pan-India in the recent years. 

What are your views on these riots and how they are handled during elections and panchayat polls in India? Let us know in the comments below.