Adding a twist to the alleged fake encounter of Ghaziabad youth Ranbir Singh in Dehradun, highly placed sources have said that Singh’s friend Ramkumar, who was reportedly with Singh on the night he was killed, has told the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) that Singh did snatch the service revolver from a sub-inspector.

Dehradun Police had earlier claimed that Singh had snatched the revolver from Sub-Inspector G D Bhatt at Dalanwala check-post on July 3, following which they chased him and shot him in the Ladpur forests. The police also claimed Singh had a criminal record and was accompanied by two friends — Ramkumar and Pradeep.

Refusing to comment on the latest statement made by Ramkumar, Singh’s father Rabindra Singh, told Newsline that “no one called Pradeep was with Ranbir. The entry in the dharamshala register was made by Dehradun cops themselves. Ramkumar is a friend and a close relative — his statement with the CBI is going on.”

Sources, however, said Ramkumar’s statement will force CBI to investigate the case from a fresh angle. “This new revelation by Ramkumar, who was with Ranbir that night, has forced the team to investigate the angle of Ranbir being involved in snatching (the policeman’s revolver). It means the Dehradun Police’s story was not totally wrong.”

The CBI, meanwhile, has not found any criminal record of Singh and is still investigating if both Ramkumar and Pradeep were with him on July 3. While Ramkumar’s presence has reportedly been corroborated, that of Pradeep, whose entry was also found in the dharamshala register, is still being verified.

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