Atiq Ahmed and his brother were shot dead at point-blank in Prayagraj on April 15.
Prayagraj:
Gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf’s killers were sent to four-day police custody today by a court in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj. The three killers will be produced in court again on April 23.
Ahmed’s killers were produced in court today after a special probe team filed a request seeking custodial remand for all three shooters for interrogation purposes.
The three men — identified by the police as Lovelesh Tiwari, Sunny Singh and Arun Maurya — were brought to the court from Pratapgarh Jail amid heavy security. Video footage shows the three being escorted by armed police personnel in riot gear while paramilitary forces can be seen on standby in the background.
The special Investigation team (SIT) probing the case recorded statements from the three men and will recreate the crime scene as part of the investigations.
Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were shot dead at point-blank range while they were speaking to reporters in Prayagraj on April 15. Lovelesh Tiwari, Sunny Singh and Arun Maurya came posing as journalists before opening fire at the two brothers.
The killings were caught on camera as journalists with mics were following the two brothers who were being taken to a hospital for a medical check-up. The attackers, all in their twenties, shouted “Jai Shri Ram” slogans before being overpowered by the police.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear a petition seeking an independent probe into the killings of Ahmed and his brother. The petition, headed by a retired Supreme Court judge, will be heard on April 24.
