Police Not At Fault In Killing Of Atiq Ahmed, Brother Ashraf: UP Govt Tells Supreme Court

UP government submitted a status report to Supreme Court after two petitions sought a direction for a comprehensive investigation into the killing of the Ahmed brothers.

New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh police are "not at fault" in the killing of gangster-turned politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf earlier this year, the state government told Supreme Court, news agency PTI reported. In a report filed in the top court, the UP government provided the status of the cases mentioned in a petition filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari, who sought an independent probe into the killing of the Ahmed brothers.

The status report stated that the police has filed a charge sheet against three accused, adding, “investigation is partially ongoing to collect evidence on some other points.”

On the encounters, including that of gangster Vikas Dubey in July 2020, UP government said the incidents were thoroughly probed in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court in its verdicts, PTI reported.

“Each of the seven incidents (including the murder of Atiq and Ashraf) highlighted by the petitioner in his pleadings, have been thoroughly investigated by the state in accordance with the directions/guidelines issued by this court in various decisions, and where the investigations are complete, no fault has been found on the part of the police,” the status report submitted by the UP government in the top court read.

The government submitted the status report after two petitions, one filed by Tiwari, and another filed by Aisha Noori, sister of Atiq Ahmed, sought a direction for a comprehensive investigation into the killing of her brothers, according to PTI.

“A perusal of the present writ petition demonstrates that the petitioner (Tiwari) purports to be concerned with deaths of criminals in alleged police encounters in UP and to that end, mentions the deaths of dreaded gangster Vikas Dubey and some of his gang members in police encounters in the state of UP," the report stated.

The report also said that the petitioner raised grievances against the report of Justice BS Chauhan Commission. Chauhan headed the panel that probed the encounter of Vikas Dubey.

Notably, the Ahmed brothers were shot dead at point-blank range by three men posing as journalists while police were escorting them to a medical college for examination on April 15.