One of the key accused in the killing of a witness in the 2005 murder case of an MLA in Uttar Pradesh was on Monday gunned down by the police in Prayagraj, PTI reported.
The accused, Arbaz, had fired at the police and that led to a gunfight, Deputy Commissioner of Police Navendu Kumar claimed. He was taken to hospital where doctors declared him dead, the officer added.
“Arbaaz was accompanied by two or three other people who managed to escape from the spot [in Nehru Park at Dhoomangunj],” Kumar said. “We are trying to track them.”
Bhartiya Janata Party MLA Shalabh Mani Tripathi shared a video of Arbaaz being brought to hospital on Twitter, saying “Jai ho”.
On Friday, Umesh Pal, a key witness in the killing of Bahujan Samaj Party MLA Raju Pal in 2005, was shot dead as he was getting out of the backseat of a Hyundai Creta SUV in Prayagraj, India Today reported. One of his police guards also died in the attack, while the other is undergoing treatment.
According to his autopsy, Pal was shot seven times and he suffered 13 wounds.
Kumar on Monday told PTI that Arbaaz was the driver of the car used by the assailants to attack Pal.
The police have registered a case against gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed, his wife Sahista Parveen, their two sons, his younger brother Khalid Azim alias Ashraf and others.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath had vowed to destroy the mafias after the Opposition Samajwadi Party questioned the law and order situation in the state in the wake of the killings.
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