Atiq Ahmed, brother Ashraf killed: How the family is implicated in the Raju Pal and Umesh Pal murder cases

“Asad and Ghulam were wanted in the Umesh Pal murder case of Prayagraj and were carrying a reward of Rs 5 lakh each. They were killed in an encounter with the UP STF team,” said Special Additional Director General (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar, news agency PTI reported.

Umesh Pal, a key witness in the 2005 Raju Pal murder case, was shot dead on February 24 earlier this year. Umesh’s killing was the latest in a long saga of violence that has followed Raju Pal’s murder in 2005. Central to this story are Atiq Ahmed and his family.

A brief timeline

The Raju Pal murder, the Umesh Pal murder and Atiq Ahmed and his family’s role in these cases has been under probe.

2002: Raju Pal contests against Atiq Ahmed

Atiq Ahmed, a local don and businessman, was first elected as MLA as an Independent in 1989 from the Allahabad West constituency. He would hold on to this seat for 15 years, switching to the Samajwadi Party in 1996 and then to the Apna Dal in 2002.

While Atiq comfortably won the elections in 2002, he was challenged by BSP candidate Raju Pal, who managed to surpass expectations.

2004: Raju Pal wins bypoll

In 2004, Atiq Ahmed vacated the seat prior to contesting for a Lok Sabha seat from the Phulpur constituency in the General Elections on a Samajwadi Party ticket. In his absence, it was widely expected that his younger brother, Ashraf, would win the bypoll and keep Allahabad West within the family.

However, in an unexpected turn of events, BSP candidate Raju Pal defeated Ashraf by a margin of almost 5,000 votes.

2005: Raju Pal’s murder

On January 25, 2005, just three months after his election, Raju Pal was attacked by assailants while on his way to the Republic Day celebrations in his village. The attack left him and two of his associates dead, while injuring three others.

The police claimed that the motive behind the murder was Raju Pal’s victory in the 2004 bypolls. Consequently, Raju’s wife Pooja Pal lodged an FIR against Atiq, Ashraf and seven unidentified people at Dhoomanganj police station.

After conducting its investigation, the Allahabad police filed a charge sheet against 10 people, including Atiq and Ashraf, in a local court. However, in the bypoll following Raju’s death, Ashraf won by a comfortable margin against Raju’s widow, Pooja Pal.

Currently, the case is being tried at a special CBI court in Lucknow.

2007: Umesh Pal claims he was kidnapped by Atiq

Umesh Pal, cousin of Pooja Pal, was a key witness in the Raju Pal murder case. In 2007, he filed a police complaint, alleging that he was being regularly threatened and pressured by Atiq and his aides to change statements in the court in the Raju Pal murder case. He also claimed to have been kidnapped and tortured by Atiq.

Umesh had also said that he had given a false statement in court under pressure from Atiq. Based on his complaint, the Prayagraj police registered an FIR against Atiq, his brother Ashraf and others.

On March 28, this year, the court held Atiq Ahmed and two others — Khan Shaukat Haneef and Dinesh Pasi — guilty in the Umesh Pal kidnapping case and sentenced them to life imprisonment. This was Atiq’s first conviction, despite his alleged decades-long association with crime.

A CBI official told The Indian Express that while Umesh Pal was listed as a witness by the UP Police during its investigation, the agency found him “unreliable” when they took over the probe in 2016 and hence, did not enlist him as a prosecution witness.

2023: Umesh Pal murdered

On February 24, lawyer Umesh Pal was shot dead along with his two gunners in Prayagraj. Umesh’s family accused Atiq, his wife Shahista Parveen, brother Ashraf, Atiq’s son Asad and others behind the death.

The UP Police, on the other hand, claimed that the murder was not just to gag Umesh as a witness (who the CBI was anyway not considering) but to send a clear message to residents of Prayagraj that Atiq still called the shots, despite being in prison.

2023: Killing of Atiq Ahmed and police encounters

The murder was captured on camera and showed five people involved: Vijay Chaudhary alias Usman, who fired the first shot; Arbaaz, the driver of the vehicle used by the assailants; Asad Ahmed, Atiq’s son; Ghulam, Asad’s close associate; and Guddu Muslim.

All five have now been killed by the UP police in encounters. Arbaz was first killed in the immediate aftermath of the Umesh Pal murder, on February 27. Vijay Chaudhary was gunned down in Prayagraj on March 6. Asad and Ghulam were killed in an encounter in Jhansi. Guddu Muslim continues to abscond.

Atiq Ahmed’s family of crime

Atiq Ahmed had over 100 criminal cases against him, with Ashraf facing another 50. In February 2017, Atiq was arrested by the police for allegedly assaulting staff members of the Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences in Prayagraj. He was lodged in Sabarmati jail in Gujarat and then taken to Prayagraj for a court hearing.

On March 28, Ahmed and two others were pronounced guilty by a Prayagraj court in the kidnapping case of Umesh Pal. Seven others were acquitted, including his brother Ashraf. The court held Atiq, Dinesh Pasi and Khan Shaukat Haneef guilty.

Umesh Pal’s murder was the latest in a series of blood crimes that Atiq’s family is implicated in. The police FIR filed after the murder names Atiq Ahmed, his wife Shahista Parveen, his son, Asad, who was also seen in the video footage of Umesh’s murder, his younger brother Ashraf and others. Atiq, Asad and Ashraf are now dead. Shahista Parveen is absconding.