Lucknow, July 17: The Uttar Pradesh Police on Friday submitted a response in the Supreme Court over petitions challenging the encounter killing of gangster Vikas Dubey. The police, in its reply before the apex court, claimed that the encounters of Dubey and his associates were necessitated due to unforeseen circumstances.

The police categorically rubished the petitioners' charge that the encounters were extra-constitutional and "fake". According to the law enforcers, the encounters were "correct" and justifiable under the line of action. Vikas Dubey’s Encounter Raises More Questions Than It Answers.

The UP Police's response comes in the backdrop of petitions filed by lawyers, Ghanashyam Upadhayay and Anoop Prakash Awasthi, seeking a judicial inquiry into the killing of Dubey and his accomplices. Their petitions would be taken up for hearing on Monday by a bench headed by Chief Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde.

Update by ANI

Dubey, prime accused in the killing of eight policemen in Kanpur on July 3, was arrested from Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain on July 9. In the wee hours of next day, when he was being brought to Kanpur by the UP Special Task Force (STF), the gangster allegedly attempted to escape after the security convoy met an accident.

The police claimed that he also snatched a weapon of one the cops, which prompted them to retaliate in self-defence. He was struck with bullets on the chest, and declared dead on being rushed the nearest medical facility. The deceased had over 60 criminal cases registered against him, stretching over a span of two decades.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 17, 2020 03:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).