Days after Samajwadi Party chief and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav alleged that encounters in the state are being used to target people of specific castes and religions under Yogi Adityanath’s leadership, significant data regarding encounters over the last seven years has been published.
207 criminals killed in encounters in last seven years
The data, provided by the Uttar Pradesh Police, indicates that from 2017 to the present, a total of 12,525 encounters have taken place in the state, resulting in the deaths of 207 criminals and mafias, while more than 6,000 were injured.
It also mentioned that of the 207 deaths, the highest number occurred in Meerut Zone, where 66 criminals were killed, followed by 21 in Varanasi Zone and 16 in Agra Zone.
The data also revealed that in these seven years, 17 police officers were martyred in these encounters, while 1,500 were injured in the line of duty.
Caste breakdown of criminals killed in encounter
Meanwhile, amid the allegations made that the police, particularly the STF (which the Akhilesh Yadav recently termed the Special Thakur Force), are targeting individuals from specific castes and religions while sparing others wanted for serious crimes, the data by the Uttar Pradesh police mentioned that, since 2017, the majority of those killed in encounters have been Muslims, Brahmins, and Thakurs.
The data mentioned that of the 207 criminals killed, 67 were Muslims (including Atiq Ahmed's son Asad and shooter Usman Chaudhary), 20 were Brahmins (including Vikas Dubey and Amar Dubey), and 18 were Thakurs.
16 criminals from Yadav community were killed in encounters
Moreover, contrary to political allegations that the Yadav community were among the most targeted, the data also revealed that the Yadav community ranks fourth, with 16 Yadav criminals killed in encounters, including notorious criminals like Pankaj Yadav, who was killed in Mathura, and Mangesh Yadav, involved in the Sultanpur case.
Further, it also mentioned that among the total criminals killed in an encounter were 17 Gujaratis and Jats, 14 Dalits, 3 Scheduled Tribe members, 2 Sikhs, 8 criminals from other OBC groups, and 42 from other castes and religions.
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