Top Cop In Bihar's Siwan Removed After AK-47 Used During July Student Protests

The Bihar government has removed Siwan Superintendent of Police Puran Kumar Jha from his post following the controversy over the use of an AK-47 by a police constable during student protests in the district on July 25. While the constable who fired the rifle has already been suspended, officers who were in charge of Siwan when the incident occurred have not yet been given fresh postings. 

Jha has been placed under vetting for a new posting.

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 state has maintained that nobody was injured by those four rounds.

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.

According to the state's affidavit, the AK-47 incident took place on July 25 near JP Chowk in Siwan.

The constable, Abhishek Kumar, was allegedly surrounded by protesters during the confrontation. 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 Bihar government said none of the protesters was injured as a result of that particular firing. The state did, however, acknowledge that three protesters suffered minor firearm injuries during the police action that day.

It specifically disputed any connection between those injuries and Kumar's AK-47.

According to the affidavit, the three injured protesters were not present at the location from which Kumar fired the rifle. The government therefore maintained that the injuries could not have been caused by the four rounds fired by him.

The affidavit also referred to another instance of firing during the protests.

Assistant Sub-Inspector Nilesh Kumar Singh allegedly fired two rounds from his 9mm pistol near Hathi Chowk in an effort to disperse the crowd.

The state has told the Supreme Court that the police exercised restraint during the protests and did not use disproportionate force against demonstrators.

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. He has also asked who authorised the issue of the weapon and whether the complete command chain involved in allocating a modern weapon such as an AK-47 should be examined.