Hours after gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari died following a cardiac arrest in jail, former Deputy Superintendent of Police (SP) Shailendra Singh, who invoked the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) against Ansari in January 2004, on Friday recalled how he was forced to resign within 15 days allegedly by the then Mulayam Singh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh.
Detailing Ansari’s time in jail, the ex-police officer revealed that under SP rule, the then gangsters used to run their empire from inside the prison.
“20 years ago, in 2004, Mukhtar Ansari’s empire was at its peak. He (Ansari) would move around in open jeeps in areas where curfew was imposed,” Singh said, adding, “I recovered an LMG from him. No recovery was made before or after that. I imposed POTA on him. But the SP government wanted to save him at any cost. They pressured me. Infact, officials like the IG-range, DIG and SP-STF were transferred to Lucknow. Even I was made to resign within 15 days.”
Revealing the reason behind his resignation, the ex-cop said, “Mukhtar wanted his name to be removed from POTA at any cost. He had the support of the then-UP government. When I resigned, I even wrote to the governor that when the Mafia starts directing police then we cannot work.”
#WATCH | Lucknow: Gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari's death | Former DSP Shailendra Singh says, "20 years ago, in 2004, Mukhtar Ansari's empire was at its peak. He would move around in open jeeps in areas where curfew was imposed. That time I recovered a Light Machine… pic.twitter.com/tMIAycGCXj— ANI (@ANI) March 29, 2024
“When the regime changed Mukhtar started begging for his life. He paid for his own bad deeds. With the help of the Mulayam government, they used to run their own rule inside or outside jail, but when the regime changed the situation was different for them,” Shailendra Singh claimed.
Notably, in February 2004, Shailendra Singh under political pressure had to resign from service. He was also slapped with a case of vandalism a few months later. However, the UP government in May 2021 withdrew the case of vandalism against the former DSP in Varanasi.
The End of Eastern UP’s ‘Bahubali’
Gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari on Thursday night died after his health deteriorated in jail. Ansari was shifted to Banda Medical College Hospital in UP after he complained about pain in the abdomen. As per the hospital, Ansari died during treatment after suffering a heart attack.
Ansari, a former five-time legislator, was facing about 63 criminal cases involving murder, kidnapping, and extortion.
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