Kanpur, June 15 -- Five years after the Bikru ambush in Kanpur in July 2020, the incident has returned to the spotlight due to a notice served on injured police personnel, directing them to return the financial assistance they received for treatment from the government at that time . The order, issued by Kanpur's DCP, headquarters, has caused concern among the five policemen who had sustained injuries during the raid on the night of July 2-3 2020. Eight police personnel were killed in the ambush by gangster Vikas Dubey and his henchmen. The injured officers-sub-inspectors Kaushlendra Pratap Singh, Sudhakar Pandey, and Ajay Kashyap, head constable Ajay Singh Sengar, and constable Shivmurat Nishad-were reportedly granted Rs 6.5 lakh each for medical expenses by the police department in the aftermath of the carnage. According to the notices, copies of which are with HT, the amount was disbursed from the Jeevan Rakshak Nidhi (Life-Saving Fund) and must now be recovered. The fund corpus is managed by the police headquarters (PHQ), which provides financial assistance in case of medical emergencies to policemen. Joint commissioner of police, law and order, Ashutosh Kumar said this was a kind of temporary and interest free loan given for medical emergencies. The recipient must submit the bills countersigned by the chief medical officer to avail rebates. "In this case, this has been a mistake on the part of the policemen. That is why the notices for recovery were issued," he said. DCP, headquarters, SM Qasim Abidi said as per the rules, the amount has to be accommodated. "The PHQ has been sending the reminders for the accommodation funds given to the injured policemen," he said. The directive stipulates a 15-day window for the policemen to repay the amount, failing which a 20% deduction will be effected from their monthly salaries. The injured officers, taken aback by the sudden demand, approached the joint commissioner of police (crime) and apprised him of their concerns. One of the injured, Kaushlendra Pratap Singh, said that at no point over the last five years were they informed-either verbally or through written communication-that the disbursed amount was recoverable. The assistance, which included Rs 1.5 lakh in cash at the time of hospitalisation and an additional Rs 5 lakh via cheque, was, according to them, described as aid sanctioned by the state. All five officers were admitted and treated at a private hospital in Kanpur following the ambush, with the sanctioned amount primarily used for their medical care. Singh said, "Had we known it was a loan or liable for recovery, we would have opted for treatment on our own expense and later claimed reimbursement through the standard departmental procedure." The officers added that the remainder of the money was spent over time on recovery-related needs. "We are in no position to return such a substantial sum suddenly. If deductions are enforced, it will severely impact our financial stability," they stated in a memorandum submitted to the JCP. The incident occurred on the night of July 2-3 2020, when a police team led by then circle officer, Bilhaur, Devendra Mishra, reached Bikru village to arrest gangster Vikas Dubey. Dubey and his henchmen ambushed the team, killing eight policemen and leaving five others critically injured. The massacre triggered widespread outrage. A massive manhunt culminating in the deaths of Dubey and six of his close aides in separate police encounters over the following week. The recent notice to injured policemen has evoked sharp criticism within police ranks. Many view it as a bureaucratic overreach that risks demoralising field officers who face danger in the line of duty. Singh and others point out that if it was a loan, they must have applied for it somewhere. "We did not sign any requisition letter nor applied for it. Our families got Rs 1.5 lakh in cash the next day of the encounter, and the cheques for Rs 5 lakh each came from the department," said Singh. In their five-page memorandum, the policemen categorically stated that their families should have been informed that it was a departmental loan and not financial assistance from the government....