LUCKNOW: Following the sensational shoot-out killing of Umesh Pal, the prime witness in the 2005 murder of BSP MLA Raju Pal, along with one of his gunners on Friday, Prayagraj police have lodged an FIR against gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmad, his wife Shaista Parveen, brother Khalid Azeem alias Ashraf, his two sons and several others on the basis of the complaint submitted by victim’s family late on Friday night.
Sources said police had detained 17 people, including two sons of Atiq Ahmad, for interrogation.
Significantly, Atiq Ahmad is now incarcerated in Sabarmati jail in Gujarat with around 100 criminal cases pending against him including loot, murder, extortion, abduction, intimidation, and illegal arms racket.
“Based on the complaint of deceased Umesh Pal’s wife Jaya Pal, an FIR has been lodged under Sections 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting armed with deadly weapons), 149 (unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 506 (criminal intimidation), 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) and 120 B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC, Section 3 of Explosive Act and Section 7 of Criminal Law Amendment (CLA) Act against Atiq Ahmad and others,” police commissioner Ramit Sharma said on Saturday.
He added that as many as 10 police teams were set up to carry out raids at different spots and possible hideouts to nab the assailants. Jaya Pal, in her complaint, claimed that her husband Umesh Pal alias Krishna Kumar Pal, 43, was the prime witness in the 2005 BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case in which Atiq was the main accused.
She said, “My husband was allegedly abducted by Atiq Ahmad and his henchmen in 2006 to mount pressure on him for turning hostile following which he had lodged a case against them. On February 24, my husband along with his two gunners -- Sandeep Nishad and Raghvendra Singh -- had gone to a local court for a hearing in the case. After returning, as Umesh stepped down from his car, a group of armed
assailants, including Atiq Ahmad’s son along with Guddu Muslim, Gulam and others, opened indiscriminate firing at my husband and two of his police gunners.”
Jaya further alleged that Atiq, his wife Shaista and his brother Ashraf were the main conspirators while his sons and close associates were involved in the execution of the crime. She also told police that she would recognise all the criminals involved in the shootout.
Meanwhile, a heavy police force was deployed at Sulemsarai and adjoining areas near the house of Umesh Pal after scores of supporters of the slain lawyer assembled there.
Locals claimed that besides the Raju Pal murder case, Umesh was also pursuing two other cases. “Being the prime witness in the Raju Pal murder case, he was threatened, attacked and abducted by miscreants in 2006 and 2016, following which two separate cases were registered,” the family members added.