Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh), Jul 2 (IANS): Two more accused in the Bikru massacre case, in which eight police personnel were shot dead last year, have been booked under the National Security Act (NSA).

The action comes a day before the first anniversary of the massacre.

A notice to this effect has been served to both the accused, Bablu Muslim and Ramesh Chandra, in the Mati Jail of Kanpur Dehat district.

With this, the total number of accused of Bikru massacre against whom NSA has been slapped has risen to three.

Inspector Chaubeypur, Krishna Mohan Rai, said, "After the approval of the report sent by the district magistrate to the government, a case has been registered against under NSA."

He further said, "Bablu Muslim and Ramesh Chandra had resorted to indiscriminate firing along with gangster Vikas Dubey and that had claimed the lives of eight policemen, including deputy superintendent of police Devendra Kumar Mishra in the wee hours of July 3. We have served notice to Bablu Muslim and Ramesh Chandra under the National Security Act."

Earlier, in the third week of June, the Kanpur police had invoked NSA against one Shivam Dubey, an aide and cousin of Vikas Dubey, who along with the gangster, was also allegedly involved in gunning down eight cops. The police team had gone to arrest Vikas Dubey in connection with an attempt to murder case lodged at the Chaubeypur police station by a local Rahul Tiwari.

Under the NSA, a person can be detained without a charge for up to 12 months if the authorities feel he or she is a threat to national security or law and order.

Dubey was killed in an encounter in the morning of July 10 when a police vehicle carrying him from Ujjain to Kanpur met with an accident and he tried to escape from the spot in the Bhauti area in Sachendi, the police had said.

Prior to Dubey's encounter, five of his alleged associates were killed in separate encounters, while 36 including two cops and four women were arrested and sent to jail.