Days after gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were shot dead, the spotlight is on Atiq's wife Shaista Parveen, who is absconding.
Shaista, also an accused in the sensational Umesh Pal murder case, is one of the most wanted criminals on the Uttar Pradesh police's list. Amid speculations that she will surrender soon, sources with the police say a massive hunt is on to nab the 50-year-old, who helped plan Umesh Pal's murder. There is a reward of Rs 50,000 for any information about the godmother of Atiq Ahmed's gang.
A day after Atiq and Ashraf were shot dead, Shaista's lawyer was reportedly quoted stating that she would surrender before the police to take part in her husband's burial. However, there was no official confirmation in this regard and Shaista was nowhere to be seen at Atiq's burial.
She has four cases registered against her, one of murder and three for cheating, according to The Times Of India.
The daughter of a police officer, Shaista married Atiq in 1996 after he established himself as a gangster. Though she initially wasn't at the forefront, Shaista soon joined Atiq's criminal world, threatening and extorting people and later planning the Umesh Pal murder.
She was active in political circles too. After joining AIMIM in September 2021, Shaista switched sides to the BSP eyeing mayoral polls. But, the Umesh Pal murder and subsequent police action had derailed her plans.
"My husband (Atiq) could not learn discipline due to friendship with SP supremo (former). My husband always liked BSP and even helped top BSP leaders earlier," she told reporters then.
Letter to Yogi ?
A letter purportedly written by Shaista Parveen to chief minister Yogi Adityanath has surfaced after Atiq's death. The letter was originally sent on February 27, just days after Umesh Pal's murder, said reports.
In the letter, Shaista accuses Minister Nand Gopal Gupta of being the key conspirator of Umesh Pal's murder. She added that Atiq and Ashraf were falsely implicated in the case. "If you (CM Adityanath) don't intervene, my husband, brother-in-law, and sons would be killed," she wrote in the letter.
Atiq's shooters before the court
The three men accused of shooting to death gangster Atiq Ahmed will be presented before the CGM court in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj on Wednesday. The Special Investigation Team investigating the incident will seek their custody, reported ANI.
Meanwhile, security has been beefed up near the court after the shooting incident. The media is being kept away from the accused.
Earlier, the three assailants were shifted from Prayagraj's Naini Central Jail to the Pratapgarh district jail on Monday. "All three shooters, Arun Maurya, Sunny Singh and Lovelesh Tiwari, are under threat of attack behind bars, owing to which they have been shifted to a high-security cell and are kept under CCTV surveillance," official sources said.