"Will encounter bring back son who lost his life": Akhilesh Yadav questions police after Gorakhpur NEET aspirant's killing

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], September 17 (ANI): Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday expressed anguish over the killing of 19-year-old NEET aspirant Deepak Gupta in Gorakhpur and questioned whether the police encounter of the accused served any purpose.
Speaking to reporters in Lucknow, Yadav said, "Will the encounter bring back the son who lost his life? ... Will the parents get their son back, who was killed by cattle smugglers?"
Police said they arrested the accused, identified as Rahim, after an encounter that left him injured.
Gupta was killed by cattle smugglers in Mauachapi village under Pipraich Police Station in Gorakhpur on Monday night. His death sparked violent protests, stone pelting, and a road blockade, according to officials.
Earlier, Yadav criticised the state government, saying the incident highlighted the collapse of law and order in Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's constituency.
"This is not the first incident that has happened in the assembly constituency of Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath -- earlier too, a businessman had been killed by the police in Gorakhpur. Injustice is happening on a large scale in Gorakhpur and the areas around it. This raises serious questions about the law and order situation. What is the police doing?" he asked.
The SP chief urged the Uttar Pradesh government to probe cattle smuggling in Gorakhpur and demanded support for the victim's family. "In the incident in Gorakhpur, it is being said that they were smuggling cattle. The government must look into who the people are who are involved in cattle smuggling in Gorakhpur and carrying out such heinous murders. We demand that the government provide the victim's family with Rs 5 crores in compensation and a government job, since the youth was a medical student. The Chief Minister should know how expensive medical education is," he said.
Yadav stressed the political significance of the issue, pointing to repeated crimes in Gorakhpur and nearby districts. "In Ghazipur, Kaushambi, and Gorakhpur, such crimes have been taking place continuously, but no major action has been taken so far. The authority of the government and the police has eroded. Gorakhpur is the Chief Minister's home turf, and if such incidents happen there, it is indeed a matter of serious concern," he said. (ANI)