LUCKNOW/DEORIA, Dec 10: Former IPS officer Amitabh Thakur was arrested on Wednesday in connection with an alleged fraud and forgery case tied to the allotment of an industrial plot in Deoria in 1999 and was later remanded to 14 days’ judicial custody, officials said.
Police said Thakur was taken into custody from Shahjahanpur in the early hours while traveling by train from Lucknow to Delhi and was intercepted at Maholi border before being produced in court. He is accused of using his position as Deoria’s then superintendent of police to engineer the allotment of a DIC industrial plot in the name of his wife, Nutan Thakur, by submitting forged documents and false addresses, and subsequently selling the land for financial gain.
The case, filed on a complaint by Sanjay Sharma of Rajajipuram, Lucknow, at Tal Katora police station, alleges use of forged applications, affidavits, treasury challans and transfer deeds, and names Thakur for allegedly providing protection and assistance while in office, officials said. An FIR lodged on September 12 lists multiple sections of the IPC, and a special investigation team was formed to probe the matter.
Investigators said they collected documentary evidence from Deoria, verified the purported false identities and addresses in Bihar, and recorded witness statements. Shahjahanpur police detained Thakur after an alert from Lucknow authorities, intercepting the Lucknow–Delhi AC Superfast Express around 2 am and handing him over for production before the Deoria court.
Chief Judicial Magistrate Manju Kumari later remanded him to 14 days’ judicial custody. A related FIR has also been registered at Deoria Sadar Kotwali, and the complainant earlier petitioned the President seeking action, officials added. Heavy security measures, including barricades at the court campus, were put in place during his appearance.
While being escorted to court, Thakur told reporters he feared for his life and would seek protection from the magistrate. He represented himself at the hearing, requesting a number of security-related accommodations, such as access to spectacles, pen and paper in custody, and guarantees for his personal safety.
