Vikas Dubey


Vikas Dubey was an Indian history-sheeter and gangster-turned-politician based in Kanpur Dehat district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The first criminal case against him was registered in the early 1990s, and by 2020, he had over 60 criminal cases against his name. He was connected to the killing of a minister of state, and in another incident, was the main accused in the killing of eight policemen during an attempted arrest. Uttar Pradesh Police declared him an absconder with a bounty of ₹5 lakh before he was finally arrested on 9 July 2020 in Ujjain. He was killed on 10 July 2020 in an encounter, after the police vehicle carrying him met with an accident.
Media reports state that because of his political connections, Vikas Dubey has been acquitted for most of his murders, despite the presence of multiple witnesses at the scenes. Following his death, a judicial commission led by a retired Supreme Court judge, B. S. Chauhan, was initiated in order to probe Dubey's death and how he managed bail, among other things.

Early life

Vikas Dubey was a resident of Bikaru,Kanpur Dehat District Chaubepur block, Uttar Pradesh. In his youth, he formed his own gang. He was responsible for numerous criminal activities, including murder and "land grabbing". Dubey soon became one of the most wanted criminals in Kanpur. The first case against him was lodged in 1990 for murder. Soon after, he associated himself as a close aide of the politician Harikishan Srivastava. Srivastava was then a part of the Bharatiya Janata Party but joined the Bahujan Samaj Party in the mid-1990s. Dubey also joined the BSP in 1995-96 and won elections at the district level, by allegedly employing force. His wife, Richa Dubey, has also won elections of local bodies. Dubey was the primary accused in the 2001 killing of BJP leader Santosh Shukla, who was then a minister of state, inside the Shivli police station. He had previously been arrested but was later acquitted due to alleged political influence. He was known to go by the name Vikas Pandit, naming himself after the titular character of the 1999 film Arjun Pandit. He was known to be alternatively referred to by this name, or simply as Pandit.

July 2020 encounter

On 3 July 2020, during an attempt to arrest Dubey and his men, eight policemen were killed, including a deputy superintendent of police, while seven police personnel were left injured. Two gunmen, identified as a maternal uncle and another close relative of Dubey, were also killed in the gunfight. The autopsy report revealed that DSP Devendra Mishra had been beheaded and brutalised with an axe, while other cops had multiple bullet wounds fired from different weapons, suggesting an ambush. The police later recovered weapons, including an Ak-47 rifle and an INSAS rifle, among others. The inspector-general of police of Kanpur said that at least 60 men had ambushed the police team, who were just 30 in number. Call records showed that Dubey was in contact with multiple cops, who leaked information to him. Following this, the Kanpur administration demolished his house with a bulldozer. 25 police teams were then formed to arrest Dubey and his associates.

Arrest and death

Dubey was arrested in 2017; the government of Uttar Pradesh booked him under the Gangsters Act and Anti-Social Activities Act and chargesheeted him in 2019. He challenged this at the high court and secured an order of no coercive action against him.
He was apprehended again on 9 July 2020 near the Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga temple in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. He is reported to have shouted his name while being arrested, fearing being killed in a similar manner as his accomplices. A petition filed in the Supreme Court later that night had requested security for him and a CBI investigation into a series of killings.
On 10 July, the vehicle carrying Dubey was involved in a road accident and overturned. Dubey allegedly snatched a pistol from a policeman trying to fix a flat tyre and tried to run away, before being killed by Uttar Pradesh police.

Post-death investigation

Following Dubey's death, an investigation led by retired Supreme Court judge B. S. Chauhan was initiated, in order to look into the 2 July encounter, Dubey's death, encounters with people in Dubey's circle, Dubey's state connections, and how he managed bail. The judicial commission also includes judge Shashi Kant Agarwal and Indian Police Service officer K. L. Gupta.