New Delhi: Did the Uttar Pradesh police apprehend a theft accused from Rajasthan and transport him across state lines before shooting him in the leg in a staged encounter? That shooting is now under judicial scrutiny, after conflicting versions regarding his arrest emerged between the Rajasthan and UP police.While the UP Police claimed they arrested the man following a shootout after tracking him through an informant, the Rajasthan Police stated that he was arrested in Jaipur by a visiting UP Police team in connection with a burglary case involving three stolen mobile phones and subsequently taken to Firozabad.The family of the man, Avdesh, has alleged that he was shot in the leg in a “fake encounter” staged by the police. Hearing a petition filed by his wife Riya Gautam, the Allahabad High Court recently directed both the UP Police and the Rajasthan Police to submit detailed reports regarding the alleged encounter and the circumstances of his arrest. This case represents the latest instance in the Yogi Adityanath-ruled state where the official police narrative in an “encounter” shooting has been formally called into question.The incident dates back to December 2025. The UP Police said that they arrested Avdesh in connection with a local burglary case following an encounter, while a second accused person, Gulshan, managed to flee the scene. A criminal case was registered against both Avdesh and Gulshan at 8:55 PM on December 6, 2025, at a police station in Firozabad under charges of attempt to murder and provisions of the Arms Act. A chargesheet was subsequently filed against the two.In the FIR, a copy of which was reviewed by The Wire, Station House Officer (SHO) Amit Tomar stated that on December 6, 2025, he and his accompanying police team set out from the station to maintain law and order, check for suspicious persons or vehicles and search for wanted criminals or those with outstanding warrants. While conducting routine checks in Pachokhara town, a reliable informant reported that Avdhesh and Gulshan – suspected of committing a theft in Nagla Kalua village – were standing behind the boundary wall of a cold storage facility on the road leading from Nihal Singh’s culvert to Chhitrai, allegedly preparing to flee the area.SHO Tomar noted that the informant warned that the two men might be in possession of illegal firearms. Acting on this intelligence, the police attempted to secure independent witnesses from the public, but no individuals were willing to come forward due to fear of potential repercussions.Also read: Adityanath’s Own Ministers Question His Government’s Encounter KillingsUpon reaching the specified location, the informant pointed toward two individuals standing in a plot behind the cold storage boundary wall, identifying them as Avdesh and Gulshan. The police stated that they left their official and private vehicles behind to advance on foot toward the suspects. SHO Tomar recounted that they loudly called out and signaled for the men to surrender, but the suspects drew pistols and fired at the police party with the intent to kill, with the officers narrowly escaping harm.SHO Tomar stated that he fired a single round in self-defence at the person directly in front of him, who then fell to the ground. Taking advantage of the darkness, the second individual fled the scene. The injured man was identified as Avdesh, who had sustained a bullet wound to his right leg and was bleeding, while the absconding suspect was identified as Gulshan.From the scene, the police claimed to have recovered a functional .315 bore country-made pistol from Avdesh’s right hand, along with one live cartridge, one spent cartridge, a Vivo mobile phone and Rs 900 in cash from his left pocket. When asked to produce a valid license for the firearm, Avdesh failed to do so. The police further stated that the recovered mobile phone was one of three devices stolen during a house burglary in Nagla Kalua village on the night of November 23 and 24, 2025.Police said Avdesh was taken into custody at 18:28 hours on December 5, 2025. He has 18 cases of theft against him, added police.However, a major contradiction surfaced after Avdhesh’s wife, Riya Gautam, lodged a formal complaint with the Rajasthan Police, stating that Avdesh had actually been arrested from Jaipur a day earlier on December 5, 2025, at around 10:00 PM. The police authorities of Amer, Jaipur, conducted an inquiry into her complaint. According to the investigation led by the Assistant Police Commissioner (ACP), Jaipur, a police team from Firozabad district, UP, had indeed arrested Avdesh in Jaipur a day prior to the alleged encounter.The ACP Jaipur inquiry confirmed that after UP Police personnel arrested the petitioner’s husband in Jaipur, necessary police documentation was processed, and he was taken into custody before being transported to Firozabad.The Jaipur police report detailed that at approximately 10:00 PM on December 5, 2025, personnel from the Kukas Police Station and the Kukas Special Police unit arrived at the company premises where Avdesh worked and forcibly took him away without providing immediate reasons or prior notice to his family. Although inquiries were made with employees present at the workplace, the family was initially given no information regarding criminal charges or his destination.Local Amer police SHO later informed Rajasthan officers that the visiting Firozabad team had taken him into custody to be processed for judicial remand, assisted by a team from the Kukas Outpost. The underlying burglary case did not fall under Jaipur or Kukas-Amer police jurisdictions.Taking note of these conflicting records, a High Court bench comprising Justices Divesh Chandra Samant and Ajay Bhanot observed on September 2: “The FIR is at variance of the Rajasthan Police in respect of the arrest of the petitioner’s husband.”The court acknowledged the arguments presented by Gautam’s counsel, who argued that Avdesh was injured in a staged encounter engineered by police officials to burnish their credentials.The bench directed the Additional Director General of Police, Zone Agra, to file a personal affidavit regarding the encounter, while ordering the Commissioner of Police, Jaipur, to submit a comprehensive report detailing the December 5 apprehension.In a bail application filed before the district court in March – which was ultimately rejected – Avdesh stated that Pachokhara police had first apprehended him in Jaipur, Rajasthan, and subsequently staged a fake encounter in UP by shooting him in the leg to falsely implicate him in an attempt-to-murder case. He submitted that local police fabricated the narrative solely to demonstrate “good work” to senior officers, despite his presence in Jaipur, where he was employed by TSL Company.Also read: Engineers, Journalists, Students: The Faces Behind UP Police’s Arrests in Noida Workers’ ProtestAvdesh stated he was taken into custody on December 5 at 10:00 pm. Sensing foul play, his wife sent an email complaint to the Jaipur police on December 6 at approximately 1:34 am. In response, the Office of the ACP Amer, Jaipur (North), sent official email communications on December 16, 2025, and January 8, 2026, confirming that a UP Police team from Pachokhara station had taken him into custody regarding a theft case, supported by local assistance from the Kukas Outpost.Avdhesh’s counsel submitted that because Avdesh had been continuously in police custody since 10:00 pm on December 5, the police claim that he came into possession of an illegal firearm on December 6 and attacked a police team while free was entirely fabricated and suspicious.Avdesh’s petition highlighted a past pattern of unexplained police detentions. On July 4, 2025, he said he was apprehended from his home at 12:00 PM by Ramgarh police for questioning. Following formal complaints sent to the Senior Superintendent of Police, he was transferred to Matsaina Police Station and eventually released on July 5.Then on November 8, 2025, he was picked up from his home around 2:00 PM by Narkhi police. After his family lodged complaints online and via registered post on November 8 and 10, he was released from Tundla Police Station on November 10.Avdesh’s counsel argued that these repeated detentions demonstrated a persistent intent by local police to target him with false charges and ruin his life.Meanwhile, the second co-accused, Gulshan, submitted a similar claim in his own bail application, stating that he too was apprehended in Jaipur on December 5, 2025. Gulshan’s father submitted complaints to the SP Firozabad and the Chief Minister’s portal, asserting that his son was falsely portrayed as an absconding criminal in the official shootout narrative.Omar Rashid is an independent journalist.