Gangster turned politician and former five times UP MLA, jailed mafia Mukhtar Ansari sentenced to 10 years imprisonment and a fine of 5 lakhs rupees by a Ghazipur court in a gangster case today.
An MP-MLA court in Uttar Pradesh Ghazipur Saturday convicted jailed mafia turned UP politician in a kidnapping and murder case of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai and sentenced him to 10 years rigorous imprisonment.
The wife of late BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai was murdered in Ghazipur in 2005 allegedly by mafia-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari and his brother Afzal Ansari, earlier today said that the rule of the mafia has ended in Uttar Pradesh. She also said that she has faith in the judiciary, the rule of goondas, and mafias have ended in Uttar Pradesh, “I believe in the judiciary”.
The court reserved its verdict on Ansari’s elder brother and BSP MP Afzal Ansari, who is an accused in the case.
Who is Mukhtar Ansari?
Mukhtar Ansari, a politician from Uttar Pradesh’s Mau constituency, was previously involved in mafia activities around Ghazipur in the 1970s before turning to politics. He has been elected as an MLA five times and is a relative of India’s former Vice President, Mohammad Hamid Ansari. Ansari has been in jail for over 15 years and is facing nearly 60 cases related to land grabbing, extortion, and murder.
Apart from his own notoriety, Ansari is also known for his family members. His paternal grandfather, Mukhtar Ahmed Ansari, was a freedom fighter and the President of the Congress Party. Meanwhile, his maternal grandfather, Mohammad Usman, served as a Brigadier in the Indian Army and was posthumously awarded the Mahaveer Chakra for his valor during the Indo-Pak War in 1948.
Political background
Mukhtar Ansari began his political journey as a student union leader at Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in the early 1990s. He was elected as an MLA in 1996 and gradually emerged as the leader of the Poorvanchal region, relying on the Muslim vote bank. However, Ansari has also been accused of inciting communal violence in the Mau district.
In 2007, Ansari and his brother joined the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) by denying the charges against them and calling them false. Ansari contested the 2009 Lok Sabha elections for the BSP from Varanasi while he was in jail. However, the party expelled the Ansari brothers in 2010.
The current case
On November 29, 2005, BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai was assassinated while attending a wedding in his hometown. The police had alerted Rai about a death threat from hired killers at Ansari’s residence.
Despite the warning, Rai was convinced to start a cricket match and chose not to use his bullet-proof vehicle. On his way back home, he was attacked and shot with automatic rifles, resulting in the deaths of seven people.
