Deepak Kumar’s Midnight Escape from Channi PS Ignites Fresh Outrage; Recalls Sainik Colony Firing Cover-up, Exposing Systemic Failures and Undermining Public Trust
- Accused Deepak Kumar, arrested under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), has brazenly escaped from Channi Police Station late last night, thrusting the station back into a controversy that questions the very fundamentals of policing in Jammu.
- This shocking incident echoes past serious lapses, including the “initial misreporting” of the Sainik Colony firing incident as a road accident by Channi Himmat Police, collectively exposing deeply troubling systemic failures in security, supervision, and accountability within Jammu District Police.
- Â The repeated failures to uphold basic policing procedures and maintain secure custody are not only bringing “bad name to police department” but are also rapidly eroding “mistrust among local public,” demanding immediate, high-level intervention and a thorough overhaul of the district’s police operations.
Harpreet Singh
Jammu, Nov 21: The Channi Police Station is once again embroiled in a deeply embarrassing controversy, as an accused, Deepak Kumar, arrested under grave sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), audaciously escaped from its custody late last night. This shocking incident has not only triggered a massive manhunt for the absconder but has also reignited a firestorm of criticism against the Jammu District Police, raising serious and immediate questions about security protocols, supervisory oversight, and the very fabric of accountability within the force.
Deepak Kumar, son of Manga Ram, a resident of Bhager Mandi, was in custody in connection with FIR No. 172/2025 registered under Sections 331 and 305 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. His escape, reportedly in the dead of night, marks a grave breach of protocol and points towards an alarming level of dereliction of duty, echoing a disturbing pattern of carelessness that has repeatedly plagued the Channi Police Station and, by extension, the broader Jammu District Police.
This latest failure comes barely two months after the Channi Himmat Police Station (under whose jurisdiction the Sainik Colony falls) was severely censured for its handling of the Sainik Colony Firing Incident. On August 21, 2025, an unidentified assailant opened fire on three women at House No. 157, Sector A, Sainik Colony. Instead of immediately investigating a serious shooting, the incident was initially misreported and actively covered up as a mere “road traffic accident (RTA)” near Zamindara. Two men brought the injured women to JK Medicity Hospital with this false account, leading police to initiate inquest proceedings under Section 194 of the BNS based on this fabricated narrative.
The grotesque cover-up began to unravel only when Mehjabeen Akil Sheikh (30, from Mumbai), one of the injured women, succumbed to her injuries on August 29, 2025, at GMC Jammu. It was SHO Deepak Pathania, who found the mother of the deceased’s replies “suspicious and contradictory” during a post-mortem exemption request, that finally exposed the conspiracy. Police teams conducting verification discovered glaring discrepancies, leading to the dramatic conversion of inquest proceedings into FIR No. 152/2025 under various BNS sections and the Arms Act on September 18, 2025. This shocking incident resulted in the suspension of three police officials on September 19-20, 2025, for “serious lapses in the probe” and “dereliction of duty,” with the case subsequently transferred to the Special Branch wing of Crime Branch, J&K Police, for a detailed independent probe by an SIT.
The escape of Deepak Kumar from the very same police district, therefore, is not an isolated incident but a chilling reaffirmation of persistent, systemic vulnerabilities. It speaks volumes about the lack of robust security procedures, inadequate supervision, and a troubling absence of accountability that seems to plague sections of the Jammu District Police. Such repeated failures, ranging from the alleged deliberate misreporting of a murder to the careless escape of an accused, do not merely represent individual errors; they collectively bring “bad name to police department” and foster deep “mistrust among local public.”
The public is now demanding immediate answers and swift action. Questions are being raised about the protocols in place, the responsibility of supervisory officers, and whether the Jammu District Police is genuinely equipped and committed to upholding law and order with the required diligence and integrity. A massive search operation is underway to re-apprehend Deepak Kumar, but the incident has left an indelible mark, highlighting an urgent need for a comprehensive and aggressive overhaul of policing procedures and accountability mechanisms within Jammu District Police to restore fading public confidence.
