Accused in the Lakhimpur Kheri farmer run-over case, Ashish Mishra, son of junior home minister Ajay Mishra has been shifted to the district hospital in Yogi-ruled Uttar Pradesh after being tested dengue positive. The move has come merely 2 weeks after he was arrested following massive outrage from across the country and the Supreme Court’s orders to take immediate action.
Ashish was in the Lakhimpur jail till late last night. However, as soon as his results came back positive, he was taken to the district hospital. Questions are being raised over the luxury treatment of a murder-accused in a high-profile case as several other jailed prisoners too often get sick and dengue positive but apparently do not get treatment in an outside hospital.
A special team of doctors will be treating him. Confirming the hospitalization of Ashish Mishra, the CMO of Lakhimpur Kheri, Shailendra Bhatnagar, said, “Ashish Mishra is being shifted to the district hospital. He has tested positive for dengue,” adding that he also has diabetes.
The union minister’s son was taken into police custody after his alleged role surfaced in the death of 4 farmers and a journalist who were crushed under 3 vehicles, one of which belonged to Ashish’s father. Witnesses and family members of the victims said that he was driving the SUV, a claim denied by the accused.
Though he remained the prime accused in the case, the minister’s son was arrested 5 days after the incident. Murder accused are eligible to be arrested immediately after they are named in a case. The delay in the Lakhimpur Kheri case was told to be the VIP treatment being given to the BJP minister’s son and an attempt to wash off the charges from him.
The Supreme Court’s involvement in the matter fast-tracked police action as Ashish was called in for questioning and after a 12-hour interrogation, he was arrested as cops said he could not furnish a clear explanation of his whereabouts.
Apart from Ashish, 12 other people have been arrested in the farmer run-over case.
Defending himself, Ajay Mishra’s son said that he was at a rice mill in his paternal village, which is around 2 km away from the crime site, at the time of the incident. He alleged to have been there the whole day but failed to prove his presence. This claim came after phone network records showed him close to the crime site when the murder took place.
Ashish Mishra was remanded to police custody first on October 11th after he was arrested on October 9th. When his first remand expired on October 15th, he was put under judicial custody back in the Lakhimpur jail.
