india prison of people - Man waiting at AIIMS to consult doctor held for Naxal ‘links’

Man waiting at AIIMS to consult doctor held for Naxal ‘links’
A 33-year-old man from Champaran in Bihar with alleged links to Naxalites was on Tuesday arrested by police from AIIMS, where, according to police, he had come to consult a doctor in the Neurology department for his ailing eight-month-old son. Bhasir Shah allegedly escaped from the custody of Bihar Police in June 2014 after he was arrested for allegedly murdering a witness, who was to depose before a sessions court against Naxals. Shah, along with 13 associates, had allegedly planned and executed the killing of the witness, who was to give a statement against them and their other supporters before the court, police sources said. Shah, who was being taken to the sessions court on the day, fled from police custody.
His other associates were sentenced to life imprisonment the same day, police sources said. “Shah was an undertrial in a case that was registered in 2011. On the day when the session court was to give a judgment in the case, he managed to flee while on way to court after which he went underground. Since then, the Bihar Police had been looking for him. Ten months later, he surfaced in Delhi at AIIMS, where he came to consult a doctor for his eight-month-old son who is reportedly suffering from a neurological disorder,” a police source said. Shah, who was sitting in the waiting area at the Rajendra Prasad Eye Center to consult the doctor, was apprehended by a team of six police personnel in plainclothes.

Initially, Shah tried to mislead the police, but later broke down and confessed. According to sources, Shah tried to hide his identity at first. He said his name was not Bhasir but Arun. Then he said his name was Vishnu and that he had come to Delhi for his son. He told the police that a doctor in Champaran had referred his son to AIIMS as the line of treatment was not available in Bihar. The Delhi Police have informed the Bihar Police about the arrest. Further investigation to ascertain his other involvements is on, police said.