4 min readLucknowMar 13, 2021 05:46 AM IST
First published on: Mar 13, 2021 at 05:46 AM IST
Calling it a crackdown on mafias and organised crime, the Uttar Pradesh government and police claimed to have seized and demolished properties worth nearly to Rs 980 crore under the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act in nearly the last 14 months.
According to the data provided by the state Home Department, nearly Rs 834 crore worth of properties in 1,057 Gangsters Act cases were seized in 2020, and properties worth around Rs 117 crore from January 1 to March 6 this year.
Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish Kumar Awasthi said the action is part of Yogi Adityanath government’s crackdown on criminals along with bulldozing several illegal properties and assets owned by them.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has already said the issue of township projects for the poor can be addressed by building affordable homes for them on land confiscated from the mafias in the state.
Recently, former chief minister and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav targeted the state government over its drive of demolishing illegally constructed houses and buildings, and said with this trend of targeted action in politics, whichever party next comes to power will do the same against those who are in power at present.
In the last few months, several alleged illegal constructions owned by people such as gangsters-turned-politicians Mukhtar Ansari and Ateeq Ahmad, gangsters Sunder Bhati and Anil Dujana and criminal Badan Singh Baddo have been demolished in the state. Several other persons, including MLA Vijay Mishra, got their own “illegally constructed” shopping complex demolished following the state government’s drive.
Meanwhile, the state data shows that a total of 5,192 gang charts have been sent for approval by the state police to the District Magistrate concerned in the last 14 months, and 4,421 of them were approved last year, and 679 in the present year so far. Out of the total Gangster Act cases, the investigators have filed chargesheet in 2,899 of the cases. In 307 of the cases, the court concerned agreed to hear the Gangster Act case against the accused before hearing the other case registered against that person.
Annual comparative data provided by the state police department earlier claimed that in 2019 the number of cases registered under the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act was 2,276. The same was 1,910 in 2018 and 1,837 in 2017.
It has also been confirmed that in 2020 the respective courts gave verdict in 594 of the Gangster Act cases. While 489 of the judgments were in the government’s favour, rest 105 were against it. Showing a stark difference, from January 1 to March 6, the judgments was pronounced in 822 of the cases, of which 795 were in government’s favour and only 27 were against it. In relation to the cases in which the court decision came against the government, appeals have been filed against 27 such decisions in the last 14 months.
According to the data, the highest amount of property seized since January last year is from Gautam Buddh Nagar (Noida). An estimated value of over Rs 100 crore have been seized. Second in the list is Lucknow with a seizure of properties worth around Rs 91 crore, followed by around Rs 80 crore in Balrampur, Rs 79 crore in Prayagraj and Rs 45 crore in Gorakhpur district in the last 14 months. Moreover, in Badaun, the estimated amount of properties seized only since January 1 to March 6 has crossed Rs 22 crore.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has already said the issue of township projects for the poor can be addressed by building affordable homes for them on land confiscated from the mafias in the state.(Express photo by Vishal Srivastav) 
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