Atiq Ahmed, his brother Ashraf buried in Prayagraj; killers sent to 14-day judicial custody

A day after their killings, gangster-politician Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf were buried at Kasari Masari graveyard in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj district. Before this, their bodies were handed over to the family members after the post-mortem examination for the last rites. Earlier on Saturday, Atiq’s son Asad, an accused in the Umesh Pal murder case, was buried at the same graveyard after being killed in a police encounter. The graveyard is located in Ahmad’s ancestral village. Notably, Atiq Ahmed was accused in the 2005 BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case and also in the Umesh Pal murder case which happened in February this year.

Here are the top 10 latest developments in the matter: 

1. Mafia-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were killed in Prayagraj on Saturday night amid police presence. The incident occurred when they were being escorted by police to a medical college in the district.
2. Three men carried out the attack on the gangsters while posing as media persons. They were identified as Lavlesh Tiwari (22) of Banda, Mohit alias Sunny (23) of Hamirpur and Arun Maurya (18) of Kasganj. They all had criminal backgrounds.
3. The shooters told police that they carried out this attack to make a name for themselves in the world of crime as they wanted to “become popular”.
4. According to the investigation, a Turkey-made semi-automatic pistol Zigana was used by the killers. The weapon is manufactured by the Turkish firearm company TISAS. It is smuggled into India from Pakistan via drones and other illegal means.
5. Following the duo’s killings, the Opposition intensified their attacks on the Uttar Pradesh government, with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav alleging that the state is in the “grip of jungle-raj.”
6. After the killing of the gangsters in police custody, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath held a high-level meeting and ordered a judicial probe into the incident.
7. Three-member judicial enquiry committee will give a report to the UP government in two months. The committee will be headed by Retired Justice Arvind Kumar Tripathi of Allahabad High Court. The other members include retired IPC officer Subesh Kumar Singh and Retired District Judge Brijesh Kumar Soni.
8. Three shooters who gunned down gangster Atiq and his brother Ashraf were sent to 14-day judicial custody by the Prayagraj court.
9. Minor sons of Atiq Ahmed were brought to the burial ground from a juvenile home. There was a heavy police presence at the graveyard and only a few distant relatives of the deceased brothers were present.
10. A plea has been filed in Supreme Court seeking to constitute an Independent Expert Committee under the Chairmanship of Former SC Justice to inquire into the police custody murder of Atiq Ahmed and Ashraf Ahmed.