Uttar Pradesh Police on Monday gunned down a 24-year-old man who was wanted for his alleged role in the killing of Umesh Pal, the prime witness in the sensational 2005 murder of a sitting lawmaker, in a controversial encounter.
Police said Mohammed Arbaaz was riding a motorcycle near Nehru Park in Prayagraj when he was surrounded by police and asked to surrender. “But he opened fire at the police, which retaliated and killed him,” said commissioner of police, Prayagraj, Ramit Sharma.
Also read: Atiq’s wife will be expelled from BSP if found guilty of Umesh Pal murder: Mayawati
But the death sparked controversy, with the Samajwadi Party questioning the Bharatiya Janata Party’s “tall claims” of having rid Uttar Pradesh of criminals. The ruling party hit back, saying there was no place for “mafia” in the state.
The encounter occurred 72 hours after Umesh Pal and his police guard Sandeep Nishad were shot dead outside his home in Prayagraj. The other police guard is in critical condition. Umesh was the prime witness in the 2005 murder of Bahujan Samaj Party legislator Raju Pal andformer MP Atiq and his younger brother Khalid Azeem alias Ashraf were the prime accused in the case.
Earlier, police declared a reward of ₹50,000 on Arbaaz, who was allegedly driving the vehicle used by the assailants to kill Umesh, and played an important role in helping the killers flee after the crime, police officers said.
“Arbaaz was among those who opened fire on Umesh Pal and his police gunners,” additional director general of police (law and order) Prashant Kumar said in a statement.
On Monday afternoon, police received a tipoff and surrounded Nehru Park under Dhumanganj police station, said Prayagraj police commissioner Ramit Sharma.
“The suspect on a motorcycle opened fire on the police when asked to surrender…in retaliatory firing, the suspect received bullet injuries and was caught,” he added.
Rajesh Kumar Maurya, station house officer of Dhumanganj police station, suffered injuries in his arm, he said.
Arbaaz was pronounced dead on arrival at SRN hospital, said Sharma. Police team recovered a .32 bore automatic pistol from the spot along with four live and six empty cartridges. A motorcycle without a registration number plate was also seized.
Arbaaz received at least two bullet injuries, which caused his death, said a police officer.
Armed men opened fire on Umesh and his two police gunners outside his residence in Prayagraj on February 24. On a complaint filed by Umesh’s wife Jaya Pal, a first information report was registered against 27 people, including mafioso-turned-politician and former MP Atiq Ahmad, his wife Shaista Parveen and their two sons, Atiq’s younger brother Khalid Azeem aka Ashraf, and others. They were booked under sections 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the Explosive Substances Act and the Criminal Law Amendment Act, police said.
This is not the first time that a police encounter in UP has generated a controversy. In July 2020, the state police shot dead gangster Vikas Dubey during what they said was a botched escape attempt. But the manner of the accident in which the car Dubey was in overturned and the encounter sparked accusations that the incident was staged. A judicial panel later cleared the administration.
Samajwadi Party national secretary Rajendra Chaudhary said, “Encounter like this doesn’t work. What has the government been doing for the six years. It was making tall claims that criminals have fled the state. If they all fled, then how are the daring crimes, including the one in Prayagraj, happening? Criminals caught the government napping (in Prayagraj). And now this government’s people have engaged in chest thumping, praising the encounter while people in the state are living in terror…”
Hitting back, BJP legislator Shalabhmani Tripathi said: “Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ji had said mafia ko mitti main mila denge (we will make the mafia bite the dust) and today one of those behind the killing of prime witness Umesh Pal in BSP MLA murder case has been shot dead in a police encounter. The rest too will bite the dust soon.”
Also read: Prayagraj murder: Accused who drove assailants to crime spot killed in police encounter
Umesh Pal was prime witness in BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case. Umesh was allegedly abducted by Atiq’s henchmen and threatened not to give his statement in the case. On Umesh’s complaint an FIR was lodged against Atiq and others for abduction and issuing threats.
BSP MLA, Raju Pal was shot dead in broad daylight in Prayagraj on January 25, 2005, and Mafiosi-turned-politician and former MP Atiq is one of the accused in this sensational murder cases. A CBI inquiry was ordered by the supreme court in 2016 in this case.
Pal was murdered barely three months after he won Allahabad (West) assembly seat in his electoral debut by defeating Ahmad’s younger brother Ashraf. The by-election was necessitated after Atiq, a five-time MLA from the seat, got elected to Lok Sabha from Phulpur parliamentary seat.