NIA to probe Bhopal jail break, 5 jail officials suspended

Shivraj Singh Chouhan hailed the state police for the operation, but he also raised concerns about the lapse in jail security

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is to probe the jail break by eight members of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) terror group, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced on Monday.

He also said that five senior jail officials have been suspended and one transferred in the aftermath of the security lapse at the Bhopal Central Jail.

The eight SIMI men were killed in a gunfight with security forces on the outskirts of the city within 10 hours of the jail break, police said.

Chouhan hailed the state police for the operation during a press meet at his residence, where he raised concerns about the lapse in jail security.

"These terrorists were not only a threat to the state but also the entire nation," the Chief Minister said, adding, "I have already spoken to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and he has agreed to order an NIA probe into the jail break."

Chouhan also said that five top jail officials have been immediately suspended. They include the Deputy Inspector General, Superintendent of Police, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Assistant Superintendent of Police, and Chief Jail Warden.

The Additional DIG (Jails) has been shifted to the police headquarters.

Within hours of the jail break, all eight prisoners were gunned down in the Acharpur jungle of Guna region about 25 km from here, a senior police officer said.

The terrorists had escaped Bhopal Central Jail between 12 am and 2 am on Monday, after scaling the walls of the jail, killing a guard and taking another guard hostage.

The men had broken the gates of their cell and scaled the jail walls using bedspreads.