LUCKNOW: Facing criticism over its failure to crack the mysterious death of 28-year-old restaurant owner Shiva Sharma and trace social media influencer and model Shraddha Dubey, the prime accused in the case, the Lucknow Police Commissionerate has removed the three key officers handling the investigation.The action comes amid mounting pressure on the police to arrest Dubey, who continues to evade arrest while making statements to the media despite multiple teams being deployed to trace her.The first to go was Hazratganj Station House Officer (SHO) Vikram Singh, who was sent to the police lines. This was followed by the removal of Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Central Zone, Vikrant Vir, under whose jurisdiction the Hazratganj police station falls, and Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Hazratganj, Rajneesh Kumar Verma.Senior police officials said the three officers were removed because they had failed to deliver results in the high-profile case, particularly in tracing Dubey and her associates. An entirely new team has now been put in place to investigate the case and secure the arrest of the accused.The reshuffle comes as questions mount over the police’s inability to locate Dubey, her sister Rashmi Dubey and their driver, despite intelligence inputs suggesting that they may have crossed into Nepal.Police had earlier suspected that Dubey was in Mahimnagar, Nepal, and reportedly sent three teams across the border to pursue leads. An SUV registered in her name was also found abandoned near Rupaidiha, close to the India-Nepal border.Dubey surfaced publicly for the first time on Sunday in a video interview with a news agency from an undisclosed location. She denied involvement in Sharma’s death and claimed that he had died by suicide after jumping from the fourth floor of a building near Balu Adda in Lucknow’s Hazratganj area on October 9. She also questioned why CCTV footage from the premises had not been made public.Police have doubled the reward for information leading to Dubey’s arrest from ₹25,000 to ₹50,000. However, her whereabouts remain officially unconfirmed, and investigators have not announced any breakthrough in tracing her.In the interview, Dubey claimed that Sharma was facing financial difficulties and had debts of ₹16–17 lakh. She also alleged that he had taken jewellery worth Rs 5–6 lakh from her residence and promised to return it. These claims have not been independently verified.Sharma’s mother, Rachna Sharma, accused Dubey and others of being involved in her son’s death. Following her complaint, a case was registered under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for murder.
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