A notorious gangster, Mohammed Furqan, carrying a ₹1-lakh reward and regarded as a key figure behind the migration of traders and Hindu families from western Uttar Pradesh’s Kairana town, was killed in an encounter with the Uttar Pradesh Police in Shamli district on Wednesday, officials said.
The gunfight took place around 3 pm in the forests near Rangana village under the Jhinjhana police station limits. During the exchange of fire, a police constable sustained a bullet injury to the abdomen and was referred to Meerut for treatment, they added.
Shamli superintendent of police Narendra Pratap Singh said Furqan, aged around 50 years, was killed after allegedly opening fire on the police team. He said the gangster was wanted in several serious criminal cases, including murder, robbery and extortion, and carried a reward of ₹1 lakh on his arrest.
Police described Furqan as a key operative of the dreaded Mukim Kala gang, which they said had spread terror across western Uttar Pradesh through murders, extortion and organised crime. According to officials, his criminal activities played a major role in creating fear among traders in Kairana, leading to the migration of hundreds of families from the town.
According to the police, Furqan was among the central figures associated with the Kairana exodus issue that dominated political discourse in Uttar Pradesh nearly a decade ago. They said fear generated by the gang’s activities contributed significantly to the migration of about 346 families from the town.
{{/usCountry}}According to the police, Furqan was among the central figures associated with the Kairana exodus issue that dominated political discourse in Uttar Pradesh nearly a decade ago. They said fear generated by the gang’s activities contributed significantly to the migration of about 346 families from the town.
{{/usCountry}}Police said Furqan first shot to infamy after the daylight murder of trader leader Vinod Singhal in August 2014. Singhal, who owned a grocery shop in Kairana’s main market, was allegedly shot dead after refusing to pay extortion money demanded by the gang, triggering panic among the business community.
Although Furqan was arrested in the case and spent about six months in jail, he later secured bail and, according to the police, resumed his criminal activities.
Police said he subsequently threatened another businessman, cold drink agency owner Ishwar Chand alias Billu, demanding extortion money and warning him that he would meet the same fate as Vinod Singhal if he refused. The businessman and his family allegedly fled Kairana and settled in Panipat out of fear.
Around the same period, Mukim Kala allegedly orchestrated the murders of traders Rajendra and Shiv Kumar after they refused to pay extortion, further deepening insecurity among the local trading community. The killings sparked widespread protests, with traders shutting markets and demanding strict action against criminals.
The deteriorating law and order situation eventually acquired political significance. On May 30, 2016, then BJP MP Hukum Singh raised the issue of the migration of traders and Hindu families from Kairana and released a list of 346 families who had allegedly left the town. The issue went on to become a major political flashpoint in Uttar Pradesh.
Following the controversy, the then director general of police announced a ₹50,000 reward on Furqan’s arrest. He was arrested again after a police encounter in the forests of Aldi village under the Kandhla police station area on April 8, 2017, but later secured bail.
Police said Furqan subsequently turned to narcotics trafficking in 2019 and was again jailed. After chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s visit to Kairana on November 8, 2021, he surrendered before a court after cancelling his bail in a Gangsters Act case. He remained in jail for a brief period before securing bail again. Since then, he had been absconding for nearly four years, prompting the police to raise the reward on his arrest to ₹1 lakh.