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The UP STF denied the claims of a staged encounter. Asad Ahmad and his associate Ghulam, who were wanted for the murder of a key witness in a case involving his father in 2005, were shot dead by the state police Special Task Force (STF) after allegedly shooting at the police officers. “The gang had sophisticated weapons. They had killed a witness who was under the protection of the UP police. And the message would have been very poor if we had not brought them to justice quickly. We had several near misses while they managed to get away," he said.
Denying the claims of a staged meeting, Yash said that no STF meeting was faked and they were ready for any investigation. He also said that "great lawyers" came to defend mafia members in court, but the STF was a professional force that acted on the basis of intelligence and credible evidence.
"The STF is a very small unit of extremely dedicated people. They have been working for 25 years and have earned laurels. They are working to eradicate organized crime from Uttar Pradesh," he said.
Yash said Asad and Ghulam were part of a gang led by their father, Atiq Ahmad, who is currently in police custody for the murder of Umesh Pal, who witnessed the killing of former BSP MP Raju Pal.
He said the gang wanted to instill fear among the people and that Asad was planning "something big" in Jhansi. He said Assad had no intention of turning himself in and frequently changed phones and SIM cards to evade arrest.
He also assured that Atiq Ahmad was completely safe in police custody and that his life was not in danger. He said the STF was committed to ensuring law and order in the state and would not pardon any criminal, regardless of their political affiliation or influence.
The encounter took place on Thursday morning when Asad and Ghulam were riding a motorcycle on the Jhansi-Kanpur highway. The STF team intercepted them and asked them to stop, but they allegedly opened fire on the police. STF personnel returned fire, killing them in the shootout. The police recovered foreign-made weapons from them.
The incident drew criticism from opposition parties, who claimed the meeting was staged and demanded an investigation.
Atiq Ahmad is a former MP from the Phulpur constituency and has more than 90 criminal cases against him including murder, kidnapping, extortion and riot. He was transferred from Naini Prison in Prayagraj to Sabarmati Prison in Gujarat by the High Court in 2019 after allegedly assaulting a businessman inside the prison. He is also on trial for the murder of Raju Pal, shot dead in 2005, allegedly by Atiq's brother, Ashraf.
