Clashes Over Rajasthan Gangster Whose Family Has Kept His Body In Freezer

Nagaur, Rajasthan: A man was killed and over 20 policemen were injured in Rajasthan's Nagaur as clashes erupted yesterday during protests over the death of a gangster whose body has been kept in a freezer for nearly three weeks. Anand Pal Singh's family has refused to cremate him and demanded a CBI inquiry into his death in an encounter with the police on June 24.

A mob attacked a police team with stones and set an officer's vehicle and four buses on fire, injuring over 20 policemen, said senior officer NRK Reddy. Protesters snatched an AK-47rifle and a service revolver from policemen.

Three critically injured policemen were taken to a hospital in Jaipur.

Protesters also uprooted portions of railway tracks in the area, after which train traffic was diverted for some time. "They also blocked a railway track but it was cleared and the agitators were removed from there," Mr Reddy said.

The police used batons on angry crowds who alleged that they were fired at. The police said they used rubber bullets to try and control the mob.

The protests escalated after a massive meeting of Rajput community leaders last evening. A curfew is in place in parts of Nagaur and internet services have been suspended in four districts including Bikaner.

Anand Pal Singh was from the Ravna Rajput community.

His family and others in his village allege that he was shot dead by the police even though he was willing to surrender.

His body was in the morgue for six days as his family refused to accept it. Since July 1, it has been kept by the family in a freezer with his garlanded photo on it. It has become a shrine of sorts for protesting villagers. His mother, wife and his daughter are among a crowd of women sitting in protest at his house.

The police have denied allegations that he was shot dead because of a political conspiracy.

Officers say he was asked to surrender but he opened fire, leaving three policemen wounded.

37 cases were registered against him between 1992 and 2017, say the police. These include six murder cases.

Anand Pal Singh was arrested in 2012 for murder from a farmhouse in Jaipur. In 2015, he dramatically escaped from police custody on his way back from court to a prison in Ajmer.

Without any known source of income, he reportedly has two apartments, land and other properties. One of his daughters is studying in Dubai.