Escape of SIMI accused from jail an 'inside job', indicate investigations

Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh state government has ordered a probe into the escape of 8 Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) terror accused from Bhopal Central Jail, and it seems it may have good reasons for doing so.

According to a report in the Indian Express, senior police officers in Madhya Pradesh have admitted that the jailbreak was not the result of lax policing, but an ‘insider job’ – because of several discoveries that have alarmed investigators.

A senior police officer was quoted as saying by the paper that the extent of insider help for the escape of the SIMI men was ‘staggering’.

Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Bhupendra Singh also said that it was “impossible to escape without inside collusion” and alleged that the jailbreak was facilitated by “funding from outside”.

So what is the evidence that it was an inside job? The first indicator of foul play is the non-functioning of the three CCTV cameras. Out of the 50-odd CCTV cameras in the jail, only these three were turned off, which is suspicious. Moreover, they had been switched off for over a week, said the report.

In fact, a police officer was quoted as saying that one of the cameras was brand new, and had been specifically installed in the inmates’ cell because they were regarded as dangerous accused under UAPA.

What also points to complicity are the key moulds found by officers, which were used by the SIMI activists to break out of the barracks. The keys were fashioned out of hard plastic toothbrushes, the kind which are used by jail inmates.

“Somebody seems to have made the moulds for the keys outside, and given it to them inside,” a police officer was quoted as saying.

Also, government officials who visited the jail found a knife lying next to a drain, near a wall the prisoners scaled.

The knife that was found near the drain was a long, standard one. No prisoner is allowed these kinds of knives, said a police officer.

The officer said that after the activists attacked and killed head constable Ramashankar Yadav and gagged the other, Chandan Ahirwar, there were no other personnel in their way, added the officer. The security guards were all asleep, which also raises suspicions.

There has been a political outcry over the encounter of the SIMI activists, with the Congress and other opposition parties demanding a probe. Three videos and two audios of the incident have emerged so far, which belie the police claim that the accused were carrying weapons and were killed in an encounter. The ATS chief and Madhya Pradesh government also seem to be speaking in different tones on the issue.

However, the government has finally ordered an enquiry into both the jailbreak and the encounter, under pressure from the Opposition.