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5 cops suspended over Atiq, brother’s killings
The three accused in the murder were immediately nabbed after the incident and sent to police custody for four days on Wednesday.
Five Uttar Pradesh Police personnel were suspended on Wednesday for “laxity” and “failure to take adequate precautions” to ensure the security of gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmad and his brother Khalid Azeem alias Ashraf, who were gunned down in police custody in a dramatic attack caught on live TV in Prayagraj last week.
This is the first time action has been taken against any police personnel since the daring shootout on Saturday night. Another senior police officer was transferred on Tuesday night overthe same incident, according to an officer aware of the matter.
The three accused in the murder were immediately nabbed after the incident and sent to police custody for four days on Wednesday. The government has announced two probes -- one headed by a retired Allahabad high court judge and another by a three-member special investigation team (SIT). The SIT is headed by additional deputy commissioner of police (crime) Satish Chandra as its chief investigator and has assistant commissioner of Police (Kotwali) Satendra Prasad Tiwari and inspector Om Prakash of crime branch (Investigation Cell) of Prayagraj police as its co-investigators, informed the order of the Payagraj commissioner of police.
According to the senior police officer cited above, Prayagraj police commissioner Ramit Sharma ordered the suspension of five policemen for “showing laxity and failing to take adequate precautions and security of the two accused in custody”.
Those who were suspended were Shahganj station house officer Ashwani Kumar Singh, Neewa police outpost in-charge Preet Pandey, sub-inspector Shiv Prasad Maurya and constables Jaymesh Kumar and Sanjay Prajapati of Dhoomanganj police station, the senior officer said.
Dhoomanganj assistant commissioner of police Narsingh Narayan was transferred and attached to the state police headquarters over the same incident, the officer cited above added.
Ahmad and Ashraf were being taken for a medical check-up in police custody when they were shot dead by the three assailants – Lavlesh Tiwari (22) of Banda, Mohit aka Shani (23) of Hamirpur and Arun Kumar Maurya (18) of Kasganj district – who were posing as journalists at Colvin Hospital premises on Saturday night.
Ahmad and Ashraf were talking to reporters and were ringfenced by policemen when gunshots rang out and the murder was captured live on video.it came two days after Ahmad’s son Asad was killed in a police encoutner in Jhansi.
The SIT visited Dhoomanganj police station on Tuesdayandquestioned the policemen who were escorting the two brothers at the time of the incident, a second police officer said, requesting anonymity. The panel also spoke to the policemen at Shahganj police station who were to provide security at the hospital premises, the second officer added.
