The Bihar government has transferred Siwan Superintendent of Police Puran Kumar Jha following a controversial incident involving the use of an AK-47 by a police constable during student protests on July 25. This decision comes in response to public outcry over the police’s handling of the protests, which escalated tensions in the district.
The constable who allegedly fired the rifle in Siwan has already been suspended. The state has maintained that nobody was injured by those four rounds. The constable, Abhishek Kumar, was allegedly surrounded by protesters during the confrontation.
In a major reshuffle, the Bihar government on Tuesday transferred 17 senior IPS officers, including the SPs of Bhojpur and Siwan, where police action had sparked controversy. Leader of Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, questioned how a constable deployed during a student protest obtained an AK-47 and which unit or armoury issued it. The Bihar government has told the Supreme Court that the constable fired four rounds from the AK-47 only after he became trapped and surrounded by protesters, and that the shots were fired into the air. The AK-47 incident took place on July 25 near JP Chowk in Siwan, according to the state’s affidavit.
The state told the Supreme Court that he “got trapped in the crowd” and fired four rounds from his AK-47 “in the air” in an attempt to deal with the situation. The state has told the Supreme Court that the police exercised restraint during the protests and did not use disproportionate force against demonstrators.
The Bihar government’s response was filed before the Supreme Court in proceedings arising from petitions alleging excessive use of force by police during protests associated with the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)-led movement in New Delhi.
