Extra-Judicial Killings Distort UP’s Development Plans

On February 8, 2023 more than 1000 delegates from 40 nations assembled in Lucknow during a mega three-day Investment Summit where proposals worth Rs 33.50 lakh crore were received. This was in continuation of an earlier global meet in February 2018 by Chief Minister Adityanath in his efforts to convert Uttar Pradesh (UP) into a 1 trillion US dollar economy.

Presently, UP has the third largest economy in India, behind Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, although it is the largest province in the world in area and population. According to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), UP was able to attract US$ 698 million between April 2000 and June 2019.

However, are mere good intentions enough to attract global investment? That is where an enlightening essay “Order in the Jungle” by ‘The Economist’ (March 13, 2008) becomes relevant. It said that “governance—political accountability and the quality of bureaucracy as well as the rule of law” has become the sine qua non for global investment after “the dual collapses of Asian currencies and former Soviet economies” in the 1990s.

One year earlier, premier United States’ think tank RAND defined “ungoverned territories” with any of these four indicators: Lack of State penetration or ineffective governance, lack of State monopoly of using force with illegal armed groups operating beyond state control, lack of border controls or unchecked foreign interference.

The need for precisely classifying these areas arose while implementing US foreign policy aims, which traditionally was divided between the State Department and the Pentagon, not to mention the Congressional control through legislation and budget.

This background narration is necessary to explain how we should interpret the macabre events on April 15th night at Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh when three armed assailants shot dead Atiq Ahmed and Ashraf Ahmed, two criminal-politician brothers, who were being escorted by the police duly handcuffed. Earlier to this, Asad, Atiq’s son and his accomplice were shot dead on April 13 by UP Police’s Special Task Force in Jhansi, as they were wanted in a murder case.

The killing of Atiq Ahmed and Ashraf Ahmed took place in full public view under the glare of TV cameras. Since they were under police custody, their security was the responsibility of the police, who were distracted, incapable and perfunctory.

The international press blamed the political leadership after this incident when the accused persons allegedly shouted “Jai Shree Ram '' after they were arrested. On April 17 ‘The New York Times’ said that the killings “raised concerns about how deeply extrajudicial violence- which often carries religious undertones – has seeped into the governance of the State”.

The media linked this incident to the policy of the Chief Minister from 2017 of eliminating criminals. The Indian Express ( 23 April 2023) quoted Prashant Kumar, Special DGP, Crime and law and order saying that Asad’s killing was the 183rd encounter killing since 2017 “while keeping the promise of elimination of crime and criminals”.

In my analysis, published in ‘The Tribune’, of the April 15 incident, which appeared to be vigilante killing in the presence of police, I had opined that going by the RAND definition, Prayagraj district in Uttar Pradesh, the largest province in the world, had become an “ungoverned territory” on April 15th night.

My friend, who is a former senior retired IPS officer, disputed my comparison of Prayagraj as “ungoverned territory” according to the RAND definition. He said that instead, the US, with thousands of killings through firearms, should be considered as the best example of “ungoverned territory”.

The point is quite valid to some extent. RAND itself had admitted on January 10, 2023 that more than 48,800 people had died of gunshot wounds in America in 2021. Half of these deaths were suicides due to high rate of mental illness in the country.

Unlike the Prayagraj incident, this situation is caused by a combination of circumstances. First is their constitutional right to carry arms under the Second Amendment which says that “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed”. Following this, many conservatives assert the right to carry arms.

The only control which some of the states have introduced is background checks. President Joe Biden’s proposals to ban assault weapons, high capacity magazines, and make background checks mandatory in all the states have met with great Congressional resistance.

In 2002 controversial American filmmaker Michael Moore shocked the world through his film “Bowling for Columbine” in remembrance of the massacre of 13 innocent children at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, on 20 April 1999 by schoolboy killers Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. “One minute Harris and Klebold were striking skittles with a bowling ball, the next minute they were striking their fellow students and teachers with rounds of ammunition”.

Moore describes how the corporate gun lobby was uncaring. He quotes the reaction of famous Hollywood actor Charlton Heston, the president of the National Rifle Association: “Shortly after the Columbine killings, and in the face of fierce demonstrations by families of the victims, an unabashed Heston led a NRA rally in Denver, Colorado, to assert his belief in Americans' right to bear arm.”

In these circumstances, my friend’s comparison between Prayagraj and America is not valid since the vigilante killers of Atiq and Ashraf had no licence to carry arms. They were defiantly flouting the rule of law, caring little for the police, a scene resembling the “Mirzapur” serial.

The American example is a typical situation arising out of a bizarre interpretation of individual rights superseding public safety. It is not an example of lawlessness as in Prayagraj, as Americans, in general, are very law abiding.

The final question is, are we able to fight criminals by using the method of “encounters” ? If that is so, Uttar Pradesh should have been crime free in 1982 through the actions of another son of Prayagraj, the late Vishwanath Pratap Singh, who was UP Chief Minister (1980-82) and later India’s prime minister(1989-90).

That story was given in detail by the ‘Indian Express’ on April 23, 2023. Noted author Janardan Thakur had quoted the late Singh referring to the encounters during his tenure: “My hands are awash in blood but they are bloodied with the blood of criminals”.

My final point is that incidents like Prayagraj vigilante killing will divert the commendable efforts of Chief Minister Adityanath towards economic development of Uttar Pradesh. For that Uttar Pradesh Police has to shoulder a heavier responsibility. They cannot do it by the easy way through “encounters”.

Vappala Balachandran is a former Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat. Views expressed are the writer’s own.