Prayagraj: The three shooters involved in murder of mafia-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Khalid Azeem alias Ashraf were remanded to four days police custody by a local court here on Wednesday, a government counsel set here.
District Government Counsel (Criminal) Gulab Chandra Agrahari said that the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Dinesh Chandra Gautam remanded three shooters Lavlesh Tiwari, Mohit alias Shani and Arun Kumar Maurya to police custody. “The shooters have been given on remand from April to 5 pm on April 23,” he said.
Police sources said that after getting remand of Lavlesh, Arun and Mohit the police took them to Reserve Police Lines for questioning. “The police had sought seven days remand which was rejected by the court and it ordered four days remand of the shooters,” Agrahari said.
Police sources said that all the three accused were produced in the court of CJM at 10:45 am. Apprehending an attack on the shooters inside the court premises, tight security arrangements were made and along with local police, RAF, PAC and CRPF jawans were also deployed.
The court premises was turned into a fortress as not even media persons, who were allowed during remand of Atiq and Ashraf, were not allowed near the court. The advocates raised the slogans of Jai Shriram after the three accused were remanded to police custody.
Earlier, all the three accused were shifted to Pratapgarh jail from Naini Jail on April 17. Though no official reason was given for shifting the three shooters to Pratapgarh jail, but sources said that the move was made apprehending gang war inside the Naini Jail as Atiq’s one son Ali is already lodged there. They were brought from Pratapgarh jail in the morning and produced before the court after medical examination
It may be noted that Atiq and Ashraf were shot dead by Lavlesh, Mohit and Arun outside Colvin hospital on April 15 while they were being taken for medical examination. After assassinating Atiq and Ashraf the three shooters surrendered before the police during which Turkey made sophisticated weapons were recovered from their possession.
The shooters, who came in the guise of media persons, opened indiscriminate fire on Atiq and Ashraf in which a police personnel, a journalist and one of the shooters Lavlesh were injured. Atiq and Ashraf were remanded to police custody by the CJM court on April 13 in connection with murder of Umesh Pal, the main witness in Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA Raju Pal murder case.
