E-Paper
Atiq given life sentence in 2006 abduction case
A day after gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmad was brought from a Gujarat jail to Uttar Pradesh in a 24-hour road journey, a special court in Prayagraj on Tuesday convicted him and two others in a 2006 abduction case and sentenced them to life imprisonment, marking the first conviction for the former member of Parliament (MP) despite 100 other cases against him
A day after gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmad was brought from a Gujarat jail to Uttar Pradesh in a 24-hour road journey, a special court in Prayagraj on Tuesday convicted him and two others in a 2006 abduction case and sentenced them to life imprisonment, marking the first conviction for the former member of Parliament (MP) despite 100 other cases against him.
Ahmad and his associates Dinesh Pasi and Khan Saulat Haneef, were pronounced guilty by the MP/MLA court under section 364-A (abduction) for the abduction of lawyer Umesh Pal in 2006. But the court acquitted Ahmad’s brother Khalid Azeem and six others. Ahmad and Azeem are also the prime accused in the sensational murder of Pal outside his residence in Prayagraj in February.
At the time, Pal was the prime witness in the 2005 murder of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) lawmaker Raju Pal. The prosecution alleged that Ahmad and others compelled Pal to change his testimony, and the court agreed with this argument.
“Umesh Pal was forced to retract his testimony so as to turn hostile in the said case. It all hurts the entire judicial system and shakes the confidence of people in judicial system. Hence, the accused — Atiq, Khan Saulat and Dinesh Pasi are liable to be punished in this case,” said special MP/MLA judge Dinesh Chandra Shukla.
Ahmad, Pasi and Haneef were ordered to pay ₹1 lakh compensation to Pal’s family. A fine of ₹5000 each was also imposed on them.
The conviction of the strongman, who used to command a wide following in eastern UP due to his nexus with crime gangs, ends a four-decade-long reign peppered with political victories, violence and a clutch of police cases, most of which are hanging fire in various courts across the state. He has been named in 101 cases but this is the first conviction. He has been acquitted in 12 cases and two were taken back by the state government.
As the order was pronounced, celebrations broke out in court and several lawyers shouted slogans against him.
Ahmad said he will appeal the verdict in the high court. “I respect the decision of the court but the case of kidnapping of Umesh Pal was false and fabricated…I will appeal,” he told reporters. Ahmad has been in jail since 2017, and was brought to Prayagraj from Sabarmati jail on Monday after a 1,275km journey by road.
“Our government is eradicating criminals by running a drive and court is being requested that every criminal gets stringent punishment. People believe that Uttar Pradesh will have a fearless atmosphere,” UP deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak said.
Welcoming the order, Samajwadi Party spokesperson Abdul Hafiz Gandhi said, “We respect the decision of the judiciary. Our party always has faith in the institution of the judiciary and that’s why we oppose bulldozers and fake encounter politics. Samajwadi Party believes in the decriminalisation of politics. The law must work the same for all, irrespective of religious or caste considerations.”
Hours after the verdict was pronounced, Ahmad was back on the road — transported by a police convoy by road back to Sabarmati jail
Ahmad was shifted to Sabarmati central jail due to a Supreme Court order after he was accused of orchestrating the kidnapping and assault of businessman Mohit Jaiswal while in prison in UP in 2018
Haneef and Pasi said they were wrongly convicted. “I have been framed but I have full faith in God. I will move the high court against the judgment,” Pasi said.
Ahmad has been behind bars since 2017 but hit the headlines on February 24 after Pal was gunned down outside his house in Prayagraj. Ahmad, his wife Shaista Parveen, his two sons, and Azeem were named as accused.
The conviction on Tuesday came in an earlier case from 2006. Police said Pal was abducted at the behest of Ahmad, who didn’t want the lawyer to testify in the Raju Pal murder trial — another case where the politician was the prime accused.
Pal also told police that Ahmad thrashed him and wanted him to retract his testimony in the Raju Pal murder case.
An FIR was lodged by Pal on July 5, 2007 at Prayagraj’s Dhoomanganj police station under sections 364-A (kidnapping or abducting in order to murder), 120B (conspiracy) and other sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against Ahmad, Azeem and others.
Trial in the case ended on March 21.
Following the verdict, Pal’s mother Shanti Pal said, “When he (Atiq Ahmad) felt that he would not be able to get away, he got my son murdered after 17 years of the kidnapping and assault incident. I am happy with the judgment in the kidnapping case of my son.”
Ahmad was elected MLA for five consecutive terms from 1989 from the city west constituency of Prayagraj — once from the Samajwadi Party, once from the Apna Dal and three times as an Independent. He was elected as MP from Phulpur in 2004 for the Samajwadi Party. Azeem was elected as an MLA from city west constituency of Prayagraj in 2005.
Owing to the lack of credible evidence, the other accused were acquitted.
