NEW DELHI: The daring daylight murder about a month a goof a disgruntled Congress worker Mubin Bharat has raised several intriguing and unanswered questions. The murder is the subject of intense public interest and discussion in and around Shivpuri because Mubin had two years ago, publicly slapped Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Madbavrao Scindia. While the police in Shivpuri district, where both the slapping incident and the murder occurred, have failed to identify or trace the killers, the victim’s wife Shamshad Begun (25) alleges that big names are involved in Mubin’s murder. “Mere shuhar kay murder main badey adniyon ka haath hai,” she said. The case is being hushed up by the police, she says.
In particular she blames Scindia “protege Ganesh Gautam who was the Congress MLA from Shivpuri from 1980 to 1990. Scindia had travelled to Shivpuri in February 1990 to address an election meeting in support of Gautam when the slapping incident occurred,
According to an eyewitness to whom this reporter spoke, Mubin Bharat, a motor mechanic by profession, had been actively involved in preparations for the meeting. A nearby shopkeeper Says Mubin was the last person to 8arland Scindia on the stage, He was seen whispering something in Scindia’s ear and when Scindia shook his head in disapproval. Bharat slapped him with both hands. Scindia security men overpowered Mubin Bharat who was beaten up by people present at the meeting. The minister reportedly intervened and Mubin was saved from the irate mob and handed over to the police. The slapping incident was corroborated by Ashfaq, a jobless youth who was present at the election meeting on that night-February 19,1990.
After the incident, Mubin was arrested by the police. On the advice of the Shivpuri district medical officer Dr.D.S .Hardiker, the police sent him to the mental hospital at Gwalior, but Mubin’s family members deny this. He was released a few weeks before his murder on May 31 this year. Fearing revenge, he left Shivpuri and moved to the small temple town of Narvar, 56 km away and set up a small motorcycle repair shop in a densely populated Muslim locality.
Shamshad Begum says that Mubin had told her that he feared a threat to his life as Ganesh Gauram had developed an animosity towards him. Also, citizens of Shivpuri which was the summer Capita of Gwalior state, venerate the Scindias. They ostracized Mubin after the slapping incident and Mubin moved to Narwar.
On the afternoon of May 31, two assailants approached Mubin near Ganj Darwaja, and one of them, who eyewitness say was wearing brown trousers and a striped blue shirt, shot Mubin in the chest with a country-made pistol and walked away.
According to the description given to the police by one eyewitness, Karan Singh of Shergarh village, the murderer was stoutly built and dark complexioned. After firing that single fatal shot, the walked away as Karan who had been lying on a bullock cart nearby shouted for help. Ganesh Gautam denied any involvement in Mubin Bharat’s sad end, but said that since his name was being dragged into the controversy the whole case should be investigated by the CBI to unearth the truth, He, however, described Mubin Bharat as a “fraud” who extorted money from people.
Meanwhile, Shankar Shivpuri, chief of the district unit of Janata Dal, has also demanded a CBI enquiry into the Mubin Bharat murder case because of the suspected link with what he called “senior persons.” But the Additional Superintendent of Police (Shivpuri) R.B. Sharma said there was “no material fact” before him to substantiate Shamshad Begum’s charges. “As long as we do not get material evidence we will not link the murder with the misbehavior incident,” he said. If Mubin feared for his life, then why was he living alone and sleeping in the open, Sharma asked.
Interestingly, though Mubin was arrested under Section 151 of the JPC (apprehension of breach of peace) enquiries reveal that the words of the Shivpun police do not contain any mention of the incident that led to his arrest.
There is some evidence that Mubin was in fact close to Madhavrao Scindia before the slapping incident. His wife Shamshid Begum produces pictures from an album showing Scindia with his arm around Mubin’s shoulder and another of the two sharing a Stage.al a public meeting, She says she and) her husband had attended Scindia’s daughter’s wedding. Scindia had even taken Mubin to meet Rajiv Gandhi in Delhi, Mubin had also offered a chadar at Amershanf in thanksgiving for Scandia’s recovery from a car accident, Shamshad Begum says.
The young widow alleges that the Shivpuri police are trying to hush up the case and have not made any real efforts to investigate it “Our relatives were not allowed to touch the body” because the police insisted it had remained unclaimed, she says.
She admits that soon after the murder she had told the police that Mubin had differences with three persons whom she had named; On that basis the police interrogated Purushottam, a person with whom Mubin had a tiff over the former’s scooter repair, Sobran a rival mechanic and Raju, owner of a tea shop at the Shivpuri bus stand. But in an identification parade, the eyewitness failed top in point them as the murderers,
Now Mubin’s widow insists the murder is the handiwork of professional killers acting at the behest of “some big’sharks.”
Article extracted from this publication >> July 17, 1992
