Mukhtar Ansari case: UP Police arrest Alka Rai, Sheshnath Rai

BJP’s Mau district president Praveen Gupta said Alka Rai was in the party before she was booked in the ambulance case.

Written by Manish Sahu

Lucknow | Updated: March 30, 2022 04:10 AM IST

2 min read

Mukhtar Ansari ambulance case: UP Police arrest Alka Rai, Sheshnath Rai

Ansari is currently lodged at the Banda jail after he was transferred from a Punjab jail on the Supreme Court’s order.

Days after booking gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari and 12 others under the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, the Barabanki police in Uttar Pradesh have arrested two of the accused — Mau-based doctor Alka Rai and Sheshnath Rai.

All 13 people booked under the Gangsters Act are also accused in a case of allegedly using fake documents to register an ambulance that was used to ferry Ansari from a jail to a court in Mohali in Punjab. Ansari is currently lodged at the Banda jail after he was transferred from a Punjab jail on the Supreme Court’s order. Except for three, all the accused in the ambulance case are out on bail. Earlier, Alka Rai and Sheshnath Rai were in jail for around seven months in the ambulance case before they secured bails.

“We have arrested two accused Alka Rai and Sheshnath Rai in the Gangsters Act case. Raids are being conducted to trace other accused,” said Anurag Vats, the superintendent of police, Barabanki. The police said they have also begun the process of collecting property details of all 13 accused.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Mau district president Praveen Gupta said Alka Rai was in the party before she was booked in the ambulance case. “The party took action against her. She is presently not in the BJP,” said Gupta.

In March last year, an inquiry was conducted by the Uttar Pradesh Police after it came to light that the ambulance used to ferry Ansari to a Mohali court from Ropar jail in Punjab was carrying the registration number of Barabanki.

In the preliminary probe, the police found out that documents such as voter ID cards and PAN cards submitted for the registration of the ambulance were fake. A case was lodged at the Kotwali police station in Barabanki against Ansari and his associates on April 2. The police have already filed a chargesheet against the accused in the case.

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