Bhopal Encounter: Star Eyewitness Deserves the Award He’s Getting

The Quint’s exclusive probe into the Bhopal encounter presents differing accounts of the star eyewitness.

(Photo: The Quint/Hardeep Singh)

The star eyewitness of the Bhopal encounter most certainly deserves an award. Meet Mohan Singh Meena, the sarpanch of Khejdadev village, where it all happened. Madhya Pradesh’s Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan personally congratulated him just 24 hours after the encounter and praised him in the presence of thousands of people.

The sarpanch definitely deserves the praise he’s receiving, because if hadn’t spoken out, perhaps the questions being raised about the encounter now would not have surfaced.

He’s expecting a Rs 8 lakh cash reward to reach his account soon because his version of the Bhopal encounter has saved the reputation of the entire Madhya Pradesh administration.

The Quint’s second exclusive investigation into the Bhopal encounter will present the many differing accounts of the star eyewitness and the Bhopal police.

Account 1

The eight SIMI activists broke out of jail between 2-3 am. According to the investigating officers, the entire available police force had reached the jail by 4 am. The sarpanch tells us of a witness who claims to have seen the escapees at 4:20 am.

There is a <i>chowkidar</i> from Abbas Nagar. He saw 8 people at 4:20 am. All eight of them passed by the school. He called the police then.

Mohan Singh Meena, Khejdadev’s Sarpanch and Prime Witness

During the press conference convened by the Bhopal police after the encounter, no mention was made of this chowkidar.

We received information around 10 am that the 8 escapees had been spotted. We sent the force in that direction.

Yogesh Choudhary, IG, Bhopal Zone

Also Read: Another Video Emerges: SIMI Men Seen Alive Before MP ‘Encounter’

The 8 SIMI members who escaped from the prison. (Photo: The Quint/Anant Maheshwari)

The police called the press conference in the hectic aftermath of the encounter and in the first few minutes laid out the details of the entire incident. But no mention was made of any phone call received at 4:20 am or of any chowkidar. The story told by the cops began between 9 and 10 in the morning.

We received information around 10 am that the 8 escapees had been spotted. We sent the force in that direction.

Yogesh Choudhary, IG, Bhopal Zone

This raises several questions:

• Why did the IG not mention that the chowkidar had already called the police at 4:20 am?
• 24 hours after the encounter, the Madhya Pradesh CM felicitated this chowkidar, but the local media was only informed about him on 5 November. Was this witness being ‘coached’ for four days?
• And if this chowkidar saw the eight escapees and called the police, what did they do? Wait for another five hours?
• Why did they wait for the sarpanch to call at 9:30 am and then leave?
• To what extent can we trust this chowkidar from Abbas Nagar?

Account 2

In an exclusive conversation with The Quint, Mohan Singh Meena shared another account which raised more questions.

Seeing us following them, they didn’t run. They continued to walk. They were carrying a lathi and bag.

Mohan Singh Meena, Khejdadev’s Sarpanch and Prime Witness

But the Bhopal IG has repeatedly said that the escapees were followed by the police. He also said that the eight attacked and injured three of the policemen who were following them and that these three are being treated for these injuries.

They attacked three of our men when they were being followed. They have injuries from sharp weapons. They’re currently being treated.

Yogesh Choudhary, IG, Bhopal Zone

Also Read: Slain SIMI Activists’ Lawyer Asks Why Jail CCTV Footage Not Seized

MP Police and locals at the crime scene after SIMI suspects where encountered. (Photo: IANS)

But according to star eyewitness Mohan Singh Meena, the police had not even reached the spot by the time the escapees reached the hillock.

According to him, residents of the village followed the eight men. TI Patel, with 4 policemen in his car, reached the highway from the Gandhi Nagar police station only when the villagers had followed the escapees till underneath the hillock where the encounter took place.

Also when a reporter from Hindustan Times visited the three policemen who had been wounded by the SIMI men, the family members asked, “What injuries?”

No other mediaperson has met these three supposedly wounded cops yet.

Police at the encounter site at the hillocks of Acharpura village after the STF killed 8 SIMI activists. (Photo: PTI)

Also Read: SIMI ‘Encounter’: 11 Questions That Were Raised but Not Answered

Account 3

The eight escapees were spotted for the first time by the sarpanch’s friend Jeetmal at 9 am. Then the sarpanch called the cops on the morning of 31 October by 9:20 am. Also, according to the him, the encounter took place around 11:30 am. But according to the Bhopal police, the encounter took place around 10:30 am.

While recounting what he saw, the sarpanch has completely exposed the official version given to the media.

There are still missing pieces in the puzzle of the timeline between the jailbreak and the encounter on the night of 30 October. We will put these together in part 3 of our investigation.

(This is part 2 in a three part series. The third is yet to be published. You can read part 1 here. This article has been translated by Taruni Kumar from its original on Quint Hindi.)