Indian gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf, both in jail, were shot dead in public late on Saturday while being taken for medical examination and speaking to reporters. A chilling video has appeared that captures the moment a fanatic shooter walks up to Atiq Ahmed and his brother and shoots him in the head.
The three attackers identified as Sunny, Lovelesh and Arun have been arrested. A "high-level inquiry" into the matter by the chief minister of the state, who has also asked for the formation of a three-member judicial commission to look into it, ANI reported. According to reports, one police officer and a journalist also sustained minor injuries during the incident.
Shot Dead In Front of Everyone
In the tragic scenes from the state of Uttar Pradesh, Atiq Ahmad was shot dead live on TV while stopping to speak to the media. Ahmad had more than 100 criminal cases pending against him at the time of the incident.
He was in custody and being taken by police to a court-ordered medical examination. This comes as his son Asad Ahmad was shot and killed by Uttar Pradesh Police barely two days prior, in what is being seen as an extrajudicial death.
The spine-chilling video captures the moment the gangster was asked by journalists why he had not attended his son's funeral.
Atiq started replying and told the journalist that he was denied permission when suddenly a shooter crept up behind him, pointed a revolver straight at his head, and shot him once, killing him instantly.
The footage shows the shooter firing multiple rounds at Atiq as he collapses to the ground.
Seconds later, two other shooters enter the scene and open fire, killing his brother Ashraf, who also had a similar criminal history to his cousin.
A police officer and a journalist are also said to have been hurt in the hail of gunfire.
In the midst of the gunfire, as police apprehend the attackers, they can be heard shouting "Surrender" and "Jai Sree Ram," a phrase honoring the god of Hinduism.
High-Profile Investigation Ordered
Ramit Sharma, the commissioner of police, claims that authorities recovered weapons from the attackers. A thorough interrogation, according to Sharma, is still going on. He continued by saying that two people were slightly hurt in the incident: Maan Singh, a police constable, and a journalist from Lucknow.
In addition, the police found a number of rounds of ammunition in the firearms that were used to kill Atiq and Ashraf. According to sources, the attackers are Lavlesh Tiwari, Sunny, and Arun Maurya.
"All the three shooters have been kept in three different police stations of the city," a police commissioner confirmed following the attack. They will be produced in court on Sunday.
A judicial panel has also been appointed by the government of Uttar Pradesh to investigate the attack. Additional police forces have been brought into the area and are now foot-marching across the city.
Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, the state where the shooting occurred, has been under fire for encouraging "encounters," a term used in his state to describe extrajudicial killings. He has since established a high-level commission to look into the murders.
