UP: Gangster-Turned-Politician Atiq Ahmed and Brother Shot Dead
Gangster turned politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother were shot dead by 3 people while they were surrounded by the police.
You all would have seen the viral video of 2 being shot dead while they were surrounded by the police and were talking to the media.
The men were Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf. Born in 1962, in Allahabad, now Prayagraj, Atiq Ahmed spent his childhood in poverty. In a bid to make ends meet, Atiq started stealing coal from trains and selling it to make money. He then got involved in extortion, kidnapping and murder etc. Atiq Ahmed had more than 100 cases lodged against him over four decades. At the age of 27 he ventured into politics and got elected as MLA and MP several times. The last election he contested, and lost, was in 2019 — as an Independent candidate from Varanasi against Narendra Modi. He was in and out of the jail often. But Atiq Ahmed maintained his hold over Uttar Pradesh’s mafia and ensured the protection of his gangmen. In a court hearing in 2019, the Supreme Court ordered that Atiq Ahmed should be put in Sabarmati Central Jail in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
In January 2005, Atiq Ahmed’s men killed Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA Raju Pal. Atiq was arrested in the Raju Pal murder case in the same year but was granted bail in 2008. However, Umesh Pal was one of the witnesses of Raju Pal’s murder. To clear his case, Atiq Ahmed had to get rid of the witness. On 24th February 2023, Umesh Pal was shot outside his house. Umesh Pal’s wife filed an FIR for the same and said that even though Atiq was in jail, he got his men to murder Umesh Pal. The suspects in the murder of Umesh Pal included Atiq Ahmed, his wife, his 2 sons - Asad Ahmed and one another, Atiq’s brother Ashraf, another accomplice Maksudan and his son Ghulam Muhammad. A Prayagraj court had ordered Atiq and his brother Ashraf to be brought to the court from Gujarat. However, Atiq cried in front of the media and said that police will kill us now in a fake encounter. “Mujhe inka programme maloom hai...Hatya karna chahte hain.” Later when they safely reached UP, Atiq said that because of the media presence, the police did not kill them in a fake encounter.
Meanwhile Atiq’s son Asad and his accomplice Ghulam were constantly moving around to avoid capture by police and had reached Jhansi to meet someone, in preparation for leaving the state. The Uttar Pradesh police received information about them and launched an operation. Asad and Ghulam were on a bike in Jhansi when the police asked them to stop. They did not stop and started firing at the police. In return fire both were killed. Atiq got the news of his son’s encounter when he was being produced in the Prayagraj court. After finding out about the encounter, he wept bitterly in court.
Then on 15th April 2023 Atiq and his brother Ashraf were being taken for a medical examination 3 men, Sunny Singh, Arun Maurya, and Lovelesh Tewari, posed as journalists and shot Atiq and Ashraf from point-blank range while they were talking to reporters. The shooting of Atiq and Ashraf was caught on camera as journalists followed the jailed brothers, who were being escorted to a medical college by the police around 10pm on 15th April for a medical checkup. In the videos and images from the incident, Atiq and Ashraf can be seen lying in a pool of blood on the ground after being shot from close range. All three accused have a criminal history, and their families have claimed that they had nothing to do with them.
Former CMAkhilesh Yadav tweeted, “Crime has reached its peak in Uttar Pradesh and the morale of the criminals is high. However, the Chief minister had a high level meeting and also formed a three-member committee in the matter.
