Ghazipur, UP:

The funeral of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari will take place amid heightened security in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghazipur today. Following the completion of the postmortem examination at Rani Durgavati Medical College in Banda district, Mr Ansari’s body was brought to his hometown Ghazipur, covering a 400-kilometre route.

A convoy of 26 vehicles, including 24 police vehicles alongside the ambulance carrying Mr Ansari’s body, made its way through districts like Prayagraj, Bhadohi, Kaushambi, and Varanasi, before reaching Ghazipur, where Mr Ansari’s legacy is both feared and revered. 

Mr Ansari’s sons Umar Ansari and Abbas Ansari, and the latter’s wife, accompanied by two cousins, were present inside the ambulance during the journey. The UP government planned the route in anticipation of security concerns, given Mr Ansari’s notorious past and the sensitive nature of the situation.

The Ansaris have designated the family graveyard in Mohammadabad’s Kali Bagh as the final resting place for the former leader. Heavy security has been deployed in Ghazipur and surrounding areas in anticipation of the funeral.

Family’s Allegations 

Despite the security arrangements, controversy looms over Mr Ansari’s death. His family has alleged that he was subjected to “slow poisoning” during his incarceration. However, according to news agency PTI, a postmortem examination confirmed that Ansari, 68, died of a heart attack, conducted by a panel of five doctors at Rani Durgavati Medical College.

His family claims they were not informed directly about his demise and learned about it through the media. 

Mr Ansari’s life was marred by controversies and legal battles. In April 2023, he was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison for the murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai. Earlier this month, he received a life sentence for his involvement in obtaining an arms license using forged documents.

Criminal Record

His first encounter with law enforcement took place when he was just 15 years old. From thereon, his criminal record burgeoned, with a staggering 65 cases lodged against him, ranging from murder to extortion.

However, Mr Ansari’s notoriety did not deter his foray into politics. He was elected as an MLA in UP on five occasions, representing different political parties.

Despite his criminal graph escalating over the years, Mr Ansari continued to wield political influence, even founding his own party, Qaumi Ekta Dal (QED), and securing electoral victories. However, his criminal pursuits eventually caught up with him, with numerous convictions and ongoing trials in various courts.

New Delhi:

Gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari died of cardiac arrest at a hospital in Uttar Pradesh late last evening.

Ansari was rushed to the hospital in Banda after he fell unconscious in the district jail at around 8.45 pm. He died at the Rani Durgavati Medical College during the treatment after suffering a cardiac arrest.

The family of Mukhtar Ansari – who had been in jail in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh since 2005 – has alleged that he was poisoned in the prison.

“Mukhtar said that he was given a poisonous substance in his food in jail. This happened for the second time. He was given poison around 40 days ago as well. And, recently, on March 19, he was again given this (poison) due to which his condition was bad,” his brother Afzal Ansari had been quoted as saying by PTI.

Mukhtar Ansari’s son Umar also alleged that his father was given poison in the food and said he would approach the court. “We said this before also and even today we will say the same thing. On March 19, he was poisoned in the dinner. We will move to the judiciary, we have full faith in it…,” he said.

Mukhtar Ansari’s lawyer had earlier this month alleged in the court that there was a threat to his life in Banda jail and that he was fed some poisonous substance along with his food. 

Several politicians including RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi and Bahujan Samaj Party Chief Mayawati have called for a probe into the dreaded gangster’s family’s allegations.

Security was stepped up outside the hospital after his death, and prohibitory orders were imposed across the state to maintain law and order. 

Officials said there was special deployment of forces in Banda, Mau, Ghazipur and Varanasi districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh as well, where Ansari wields influence allegedly through a criminal syndicate.

Ansari’s autopsy will be conducted today at Banda Medical College Hospital.

Ansari had also been hospitalised in the early hours of Tuesday and discharged after nearly 14 hours. The prison department had said that Ansari’s health had deteriorated because he was fasting during Ramadan and he had fallen in the washroom.

Ansari, the five-time former MLA from Mau, had more than criminal cases against him, of which 15 were on murder charges. 

He had joined a gang in the 1980s and then formed his own in the 1990s. The gang was involved in extortion and kidnapping in the Mau, Ghazipur, Varanasi and Jaunpur districts.

Lucknow:

Mukhtar Ansari straddled the worlds of crime and politics in Uttar Pradesh. The gangster-politician was booked in 65 criminal cases ranging from murder to extortion and was elected an MLA five times on the tickets of different political parties.

Ansari, 63, died of cardiac arrest in a hospital in Banda on Thursday.

Born into an influential family in 1963, Ansari entered the world of crime to establish himself and his gang in the government contract mafia that was then flourishing in the state.

His tryst with crime began as early as 1978, when Ansari was just 15 years of age. He had his first brush with the law when he was booked for criminal intimidation at Saidpur Police Station of Ghazipur.

Almost a decade later in 1986, by the time he had become a well-known face in the contract mafia circle, another case of murder was lodged against him at Muhammad Police Station of Ghazipur.

Over the next decade, Ansari became a common face of crime with at least 14 more cases under serious charges lodged against him.

His growing criminal graph, however, did not hinder his entry in politics.

Ansari was first elected an MLA in the UP assembly in 1996 on a ticket from Bahujan Samaj Party from Mau. He continued his successful run on the seat as an independent candidate in 2002 and 2007 assembly elections.

In 2012, he launched Qaumi Ekta Dal (QED) and won from Mau again.

He won from Mau again in 2017. In 2022 he vacated the seat for his son Abbas Ansari who won from the seat on the ticket of Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party.

Since 2005, till his death, Ansari had been lodged in different jails of UP and Punjab.

He had 28 criminal cases, including that of murder, and seven cases under the UP’s Gangster Act registered against him since 2005.

He had been convicted in eight criminal cases since September 2022 and was facing trial in 21 cases in different courts.

Ansari was awarded life term and a penalty of Rs 2.02 lakh by Varanasi MP/MLA earlier this month in a case of fraudulently obtaining an arms licence around 37 years ago.

This was the eighth case in which he was sentenced in the past 18 months by different courts of UP and the second in which he was awarded a life term.

On December 15, 2023, a Varanasi MP/MLA court sentenced Ansari for five years and six months for giving death threat to Mahavir Prasad Rungta for turning hostile and not pursue a case involving the kidnapping and murder of BJP leader and coal trader Nand Kishore Rungta on January 22, 1997.

On October 27, 2023, a Ghazipur MP/MLA court had awarded him 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and penalty of 5 lakh in a Gangster Act case lodged against him in 2010.

On June 5, 2023, a Varanasi MP/MLA had awarded life imprisonment to Ansari in the case of murder of Awadesh Rai, the elder brother of former Congress MLA and present UP Congress president Ajay Rai.

Awadesh Rai was sprayed with bullets when he and brother Ajay were standing outside their house in the Lahurabir locality of Varanasi on August 3, 1991.

On April 29, 2023, Ghazipur MP/MLA court had sentenced Ansari to 10 years of imprisonment in a case of murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai.

The Lucknow bench of Allahabad high court had on September 23, 2022, awarded Ansari five years of rigorous imprisonment in a Gangster Act case registered against him in 1999 at Hazratganj Police Station in Lucknow and imposed a fine on him Rs 50,000.

The Ghazipur MP/MLA court on December 15, 2022, had awarded him 10 years of imprisonment and slapped a penalty of 5 lakh each in two separate cases of Gangster Act lodged against him in 1996 and 2007.

Ansari’s first conviction in the last 13 months was awarded by the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court.

He was awarded seven years of imprisonment on September 21, 2022, for threatening the jailor of the Lucknow district jail in 2003.

The Uttar Pradesh government had to approach the Supreme Court to bring Ansari back to the state from Ropar jail in Punjab.

Ansari, then a BSP MLA, was lodged in the Ropar jail in January 2019 in connection with an extortion case and remained there for a period of more than two years.

In March 2021, while hearing a plea of the UP government, the SC had directed the Punjab government to hand over Ansari’s custody to UP, saying it was being denied on trivial grounds under the guise of medical issues.

The court had also said that a convict or an under-trial prisoner, who disobeys the law of the land, cannot oppose his transfer from one prison to another and the courts are not to be helpless bystanders when the rule of law is being challenged with impunity.

Since 2020, Ansari gang had been under an intense heat from police, which either seized or demolished illegal property worth Rs 608 crore belonging to the gang.

Illegal business, contracts, or tenders worth over Rs 215 crore of the gang was also stopped by the police in this period.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Banda, UP:

After the death of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari due to cardiac arrest, Umar Ansari, son of Mukhtar Ansari, claimed that his father was given poison in the food and said they would move to the judiciary. “We have full faith in it,” he added.

“I was not told anything from the administration side, I came to know about it through the media… But now the whole nation knows everything… Two days ago I came to meet him, but I was not allowed… We said earlier also and even today we will say the same about the allegation of giving slow poison. On March 19, he was poisoned in the dinner. We will move to the judiciary, we have full faith in it…” Umar Ansari, son of Mukhtar Ansari, said.

“Post-mortem will be conducted tomorrow, after that, they will give us the body. We will then follow with the further process (cremation)… My father alleged being given a slow poison… Around five doctors panel has been made (for carrying out the post-mortem),” Umar Ansari added.

Meanwhile, the body of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari has been sent for post-mortem at Banda Medical College Hospital, Banda.

After the death of the five time MLA, several political leaders extended their condolences. On Thursday, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi expressed his grief in support of the family of Mukhtar Ansari.

“I pray to Allah to forgive Mukhtar Ansari and give patience to his family and his loved ones. The people of Ghazipur lost their favourite son and brother. Mukhtar Saheb had made serious allegations against the administration that he had been poisoned. Despite this, the government did not pay any attention to his treatment. Condemnable and regrettable,” AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi posted on X.

Samajwadi Party leader Ameeque Jamei demanded a thorough investigation of Mukhtar Ansari’s death.

“We stand with the family of Mukhtar Ansari… Recently he said that he can be murdered anytime… Why he was not given a proper medical facility…We will demand a thorough investigation of the incident…”

Congress leader Surendra Rajput also questioned the death of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari due to cardiac arrest.
“Today Mukhtar Ansari’s death in the jail raises a big question BJP-led UP Government…This should be investigated thoroughly so that everyone gets to know what is going on…” said Congress leader Surendra Rajput.

The dreaded gangster was brought to the hospital around 8:25 PM, according to the official release from the hospital. A team of nine doctors attended to him before he died, the release added.

Expressing condolences over the death of Mukhtar Ansari, the Samajwadi Party shared a post on Twitter that read, “Sad demise of former MLA Shri Mukhtar Ansari. May his soul rest in peace. May the bereaved family members get the strength to bear this immense sorrow. Humble tribute !”.

On Tuesday, he was admitted to a hospital in Uttar Pradesh’s Banda after he complained of abdominal pain. He was then shifted to Uttar Pradesh’s Rani Durgawati Medical College after his discharge on Tuesday.

Ansari was elected as an MLA from the Mau assembly seat five times, including twice as a Bahujan Samaj Party candidate. He had a strong influence in Ghazipur, his hometown.

In April 2023, Mukhtar Ansari was convicted and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for the murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai by an MP MLA court. He was sentenced to life in prison on March 13, 2024, in a case related to the use of forged documents for obtaining an arms licence in 1990.

Before this, in December 2023, the MP/MLA Court of Varanasi had found Mukhtar Ansari guilty of threatening Mahavir Prasad Rungta, a witness in the murder of 26-year-old coal businessman Nand Kishor Rungta, and had sentenced him to five and a half years of rigorous imprisonment and slapped a fine of Rs 10,000 against him.

On October 15, last year, the Enforcement Directorate attached lands, a building and bank deposits worth more than Rs 73.43 lakh as part of the money laundering investigation against Mukhtar Ansari.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)