Man booked for sheltering Atiq’s wife, his aide: Police

Police said Jafar had allegedly provided shelter to Shaista and Sabir at his residence in Khuldabad area a day after the murder of Atiq on April 15. Sabir is carrying a reward of Rs 5 lakh on his head in the Umesh Pal murder case.

Atiq and his younger brother Ashraf, both accused in the Umesh Pal murder case, were shot dead by three assailants at the gate of a government hospital in Prayagraj on April 15, where police had taken them for a medical examination.

Police said Jafar used to stay with Atiq’s son Asad Ahmed at his Lucknow residence and would follow his instructions. Asad, also an accused in the Umesh Pal murder case, got killed in a police encounter in Jhansi on April 13. Police claimed to have recovered Asad’s cell phone from his possession. Police said that during the questioning, Jafar accepted that Shaista and Sabir stayed at his residence in Khuldabad area of Prayagraj on April 16 and that they left for an undisclosed location the next day.

According to police, they recently got to know that Jafar used to stay at Atiq’s residence in Lucknow’s Mahanagar area and after Umesh Pal’s msto his ancestral house in Khuldabad area of Prayagraj. Police said that they had been collecting Jafar’s details, and on May 2, they got information that Sabir visited his house for some work. A police team immediately raided Jafar’s house, but Sabir managed to escape, said police, adding that they detained Jafar.

According to police, Jafar also told them that Shaista and Sabir had planned to attend the last rites of Atiq in camouflage, but they changed their plan at the last moment because of the deployment of a heavy police force at the burial site. Atiq was booked under IPC section 216 (harbouring offender who has escaped from custody or whose apprehension has been ordered) at the Dhoomanganj police station in the Umesh Pal murder case.

When contacted, Dhoomanganj police station SHO Rajesh Kumar said, “Jafar was detained and booked for providing shelter to the absconding accused. He was released because the charge against him was of a bailable offence.” Police said Jafar’s father Jafar Ullah is co-accused with Atiq’s son Umar Ahmed in the assault case of a businessman inside the Deoria district jail in 2019. Victim Mohit Jaiswal was allegedly kidnapped in Lucknow and then taken to the Deoria jail where Atiq was lodged. Currently, Jafar Ullah is lodged in the Lucknow district jail along with Umar Ahmed.