UP announces Rs 25 lakh ex-gratia, government job to Apple executive's wife

Lucknow : In the face of all-round flak over the killing of an Apple executive by a trigger-happy police constable in Lucknow, the Uttar Pradesh government late on Saturday announced Rs 25 lakh ex-gratia to the family of the victim, Vivek Tiwari, and a government job to a family member.

The government has accepted two demands of the bereaved family, an official told IANS, adding that on the third demand of a CBI probe into the killing, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has already said that if need be, the state government will recommend it.

Following these assurances, the victim's family has agreed to end its protest and go ahead with the cremation procedure of Vivek Tiwari.

Kalpana, the widow of the 38-year-old Tiwari had been protesting outside their Aakash Ganga tower apartment in New Hyderabad, asking the Chief Minister to come and explain to her why her innocent husband was shot dead by policemen.

She was joined by local leaders of the Congress and Samajwadi Party (SP).

Medical Education minister Ashutosh Tandon went to pacify the aggrieved family members, relatives and neighbours of the victim, but to no avail after which the district magistrate of Lucknow, Kaushal Raj Sharma, late night met Kalpana and handed her the cheque of compensation and announced that she will be given a job in the Lucknow Municipal Corporation.

It was after this that the protests were called off and the family announced that Tiwari will be cremated as per their religious traditions on Sunday.

Vivek Tiwari was shot at by a constable early in the morning when he was returning from a function of his company. He was with a colleague Sana Khan, who has alleged that the policemen on mobike waylaid them and then when they did not stop, shot him in the neck.

Meanwhile, Director General of Police (DGP) O.P. Singh has trashed the theory of self-defence put out by the police constable and said that self-defence cannot be allowed as an excuse for murder.