Union Minister Chirag Paswan on Friday met the family of student and local activist Bharat Tiwari and condemned the circumstances surrounding his death, saying the role of administrative officers in the incident was completely unacceptable in a civilised society.
Speaking to reporters, Chirag Paswan said, "The way Bharat Tiwari was killed by some administrative officers is completely unacceptable in any civilised society or internal system. Those who are responsible for maintaining law and order, if they themselves take the law into their hands, then the people of Bihar will lose faith in the justice system.
It is important that strict action is taken and the strictest punishment is given to those officers who, for their own vested interests, were involved in the killing of Bharat Tiwari." Paswan also urged people not to give the incident a religious or caste angle. "Crime is crime.
Anyone who tries to politicise such incidents on the basis of religion or caste is indulging in cheap politics. I do not support that. Whoever is guilty should be punished, irrespective of who they are," he said. He added that he had already discussed the matter with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and assured the family that his party would continue to pursue justice.
"I came here to meet the family because they deserve justice. Our senior party leaders have also visited them. We have raised this issue at various levels, and we will continue our efforts until the guilty officers are punished," he said. Reacting to remarks by a political leader praising the Bhojpur Police, Paswan said, "If a 'Rakshak' (protector) becomes a 'Bhakshak' (predator), it is simply not acceptable.
I fail to understand how firing can be justified after someone has already surrendered." He maintained that if Bharat Tiwari had committed any offence, the police should have arrested him and conducted a proper investigation. "Whoever is guilty should certainly be punished.
But once a person has surrendered, opening fire on him cannot be justified," he said. Responding to comments made by former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, Paswan said he did not wish to comment on any individual's statement but maintained that the incident was wrong.
"If someone has surrendered, the law requires an investigation, not an encounter. Such actions should never become a precedent for the future," he said. Paswan also criticised the posting of Jagdishpur DSP Rajesh Kumar Sharma, a named accused in the Bharat Tiwari encounter case, to the Prohibition and State Narcotics Control Bureau of Bihar Police.
"If a person named in an FIR is being supported or promoted, it is completely wrong. I will also raise this issue with the Chief Minister," Paswan added.