Weapons found in Phoolan's residence

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, JULY 30. In a major development in the Phoolan Devi murder case, two countrymade pistols and five live cartridges were recovered from the late Samajwadi Party MP's 44 Ashoka Road residence today.

Police sources said the weapons were recovered at the instance of Ranjit Singh, a SP worker, who was one of the suspects in the murder. While a team had been sent to Phoolan Devi's constituency Mirzapur to trace Ranjit Singh, it was later learnt that he was holed up in Phoolan's official residence itself.

Subsequently, Ranjit Singh was picked up by the Crime Branch of the Delhi police and it was at his instance that the two countrymade weapons and cartridges were recovered. Incidentally, it was the prime accused, Sher Singh Rana alias Pankaj, who had disclosed during interrogation that he had given the two weapons to Ranjit Singh for safe-keeping before the murder.

The weapons were found around 10 a.m. near the garage by a domestic help. The matter was immediately reported to police and the Crime Branch investigating the case.

After a thorough search of the servant quarters and the backyard, the Crime Branch team, headed by the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Mr. H.P.S. Cheema, interrogated the domestic help who had found the weapons. The occupants of the servant quarters were also interrogated. The police team took photographs and lifted finger-prints from the spot.

Police were perplexed about the presence of the weapons. ``There was a heavy deployment of police force in and around her residence after she was murdered. Therefore, it would have almost been impossible for anyone to have entered the premises with the weapons,'' said a police officer.

Police are investigating the possibility of the presence of the weapons in the premises even before Phoolan's murder. ``There is a possibility that the weapons recovered from the garage were part of the plan to eliminate Phoolan Devi,'' he added. Police are also probing the involvement of ``insiders.'' The Crime Branch sleuths interrogated Phoolan's husband, Mr. Umed Singh, at length for the second consecutive day today. They are also trying to confirm the sequence of events as stated by Pankaj, who is under police custody.

Mr. Umed Singh confirmed the recovery of weapons from the backyard. He alleged that it could be a ploy to mount an assault on him. Mr. Singh said he met the Union Home Minister, Mr. L.K. Advani, and sought security for himself. Astonished at the recovery of the weapons, Mr. Singh alleged that ``after Phoolan, it seems they are targeting me.''

The other family members were also questioned. Police said Ms. Uma Kashyap and her husband, Mr. Vijay Kashyap, could be summoned for further interrogation. They have not been detained.

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