New Delhi, Sep 7 (IANS): After Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, another SP leader alleged on Saturday that Mangesh Yadav, the accused in the Sultanpur robbery case, was killed in the encounter because he belonged to the Yadav community.

While talking to IANS, SP leader Sunil Singh Yadav said that the main accused in this robbery was from the same community as the Chief Minister, so he was made to surrender. But when the UP police found out that one of the accused was a Yadav, they killed him.

Sunil Singh further said that what happened in Sultanpur wasn’t an encounter but a murder. He claimed that two days before the incident, the police had already taken this man into custody.

The SP leader questioned why the government was not listening to the statements of the man’s mother. He criticised how the police suddenly declared a reward and then killed the person.

Sajan Singh pointed out that the police team involved in the encounter didn’t look serious, as they were wearing bathroom slippers while claiming they were chasing a criminal.

The SP leader also raised questions about what happened to the gold worth crores that was looted, and why the main accused, who is from the same community as Yogi Adityanath, was only made to surrender instead of being punished like the others.

"The Samajwadi Party has always demanded that the Supreme Court should take notice and form a committee to investigate because this is not just an encounter but a case of murder," he added.

Sunil Singh further said, "Samajwadi Party believes this murder was committed based on caste, and we insist that only the Supreme Court should investigate this case, not the local administration."

Regarding the news of wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia joining Congress, he questioned why joining Congress would be considered anti-national.

He argued that staying silent while Manipur is burning is what should be considered anti-national. He criticised the Prime Minister for keeping mum on issues within India while being portrayed in the media that he is trying to stop the war between Ukraine and Russia.

Sunil Singh urged the government to wake up and face the reality of what’s happening in the country.

Mangesh Yadav, a wanted criminal in the August 28 robbery at Bharat Ji Jewelers in the Thatheri Bazaar area of Sultanpur, was killed in the encounter with the STF on Thursday.

Earlier, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav had also raised questions about this encounter.

Taking to social media platform X, Akhilesh claimed that there might be a deep connection between the ruling party and the robbers. He alleged that the main accused was made to surrender before the fake encounter and that other people involved were only shot at superficially, while one was killed based on his caste.

In another post, Akhilesh Yadav questioned the government, alleging that a man who was taken into custody two days earlier was shot in the name of an encounter, and now there is pressure to change his medical report. He urged the Supreme Court to take immediate notice of this serious government crime before the evidence is destroyed.