Asad, Ashraf hatched Umesh murder plot in jail? Cops to probe as video surfaces

After a video showing Atiq Ahmad's son Asad and his associates coming out of the district jail in Bareilly surfaced online, the police said it will be probed if they hatched the plan to kill Umesh Pal inside the jail with the gangster-politician's brother Ashraf.

According to the police, the video that is making rounds on the internet since Sunday is said to be of February 12, where Asad Ahmad, Ghulam, Guddu Muslim, Usman and other accused can be seen coming out of the jail after meeting Atiq's brother and former MLA Ashraf, who was then lodged in the jail in Bareilly.

The police found Asad's Aadhaar card along with a slip indicating that on February 12, at 1.22 pm, seven to eight people entered the jail and after spending about two-and-a-half hours inside, they came out at 3.14 pm.

This video establishes that the meeting of those accused of the Umesh Pal murder case took place in the jail and it will be probed if the conspiracy for the same hatched inside the district jail, a senior police officer said.

The jail administration has handed over the video to Bareilly and Prayagraj police.

The said meeting was held 12 days before Umesh Pal, a prime witness in the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party MLA Raju Pal in 2005, and his two police security guards were shot dead on February 24 outside his home in Prayagraj's Dhoomanganj area.

Bareilly senior superintendent of police Prabhakar Chowdhary on Monday said, "We have come to know that a video is surfacing on social media. The Prayagraj STF will do the needful in this regard."

"Whatever is necessary in connection with the FIR here lodged with illegal meetings in the Bareilly jail will be taken as per the rules, " the SSP said.

Based on the facts that will emerge during the investigation in connection with this FIR, further action will be taken, the SSP said.

After the Umesh Pal murder, an FIR was filed at the Bithri Chainpur police station in Bareilly against Ashraf, his brother-in-law Saddam, henchmen Lalla Gaddi, jail warden Shivhari Awasthi, canteen director Dayaram alias Nanhe, jail officers and employees, for conspiracy, extortion, giving protection to criminals and other sections.

Nine accused including Lalla Gaddi were sent to jail on the grounds that they used to work for Saddam, Ashraf's brother-in-law.

It was through Saddam and Lalla Gaddi that the accused met Ashraf illegally in Bareilly district jail on February 12.

Earlier, between 26 September 2021 and 26 June 2022, nine appointments were made through computerised slips while 23 meetings were conducted through the jail manual method on 14 applications with Ashraf.

Only two to three people's names, addresses and identity cards were submitted for these meetings but an inquiry was carried out in which it was found that several people were present in them against the rules.

Later in March, six district jail personnel, including the jailor and deputy jailor, were suspended on Monday for facilitating illegal meetings of visitors with Ashraf in the prison.

On the night of April 15, Atiq Ahmad (60) and Ashraf were shot dead at point-blank range by three men posing as journalists in the middle of a media interaction while police personnel were escorting them to a medical college here for a checkup.

Asad and his accomplice Ghulam were killed in an encounter by the Special Task Force of the UP Police in Jhansi on April 13.

On March 6, Usman was also killed in a police encounter, while Guddu Muslim is absconding.