Umesh Pal murder case: Atiq Ahmed moves SC seeking protection, says doesn't want to be shifted from Gujarat to UP jail

New Delhi: Gangster-turned-politician and former Samajwadi Party leader Atiq Ahmed has moved Supreme Court seeking direction to the Centre to protect his life and restrain from taking him from Ahmedabad central jail to Prayagraj or any part of the state of Uttar Pradesh.

The petitioner said that he with his entire family has been roped in as accused persons in Dhoomanganj in Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh in the murder case of one Umesh Pal. "Further, the Chief Minister of the State, without any investigation merely on the basis of suspicion, has made a statement on the floor of the State Assembly that the petitioner will be destroyed and eliminated completely," the petitioner said.

Therefore, there is a genuine and perceptible threat to the life of the petitioner and his family members, the petitioner said.
In such circumstances, petitioner Ahmad said that he is constrained to file the present petition before the Court for the protection of his life as he genuinely apprehends and believes that he may be killed in fake encounters on one pretext or the other by Uttar Pradesh Police.
The petitioner submitted that it is a deep political conspiracy against the petitioner and his family members.
The petitioner has prayed to the Court to issue any appropriate direction to the Respondents to protect the life of the Petitioner, who has been made accused in an FIR, against the open, direct and immediate threat to his life from high State functionaries of State of Uttar Pradesh.

The petitioner sought to and direct respondent Govt. of India to ensure the safety and security of the Petitioner and that no physical or bodily injury or any other harm is caused to the person of the Petitioner and his family members made accused in the said FIR.

The petitioner sought to issue appropriate direction restraining the authority from taking the Petitioner from Central Jail, Ahmedabad to Prayagraj or any part of the State of Uttar Pradesh and carry out an interrogation of the Petitioner, if any, at Central Jail, Ahmedabad, Gujarat or at any other suitable place at Ahmedabad itself where the petitioner is presently imprisoned under the protection of Gujarat Police as well as Central forces/paramilitary forces.
The petitioner has sought to direct the transit of the Petitioner from Ahmedabad to Uttar Pradesh under the protection of any central police forces or paramilitary force if at all the transit of the Petitioner is necessary to UP.

Ahmad said that he had no motive to kill Umesh Pal, who was the complainant in a separate case against him because the trial is going to end next month and there was nothing left to be done by Umesh Pal in the trial of that matter.
"It was very well known to the rivals of Petitioner that if anything were to happen to Umesh Pal then Petitioner would certainly be the prime suspect in view of the pending case against him by Umesh Pal and he will be made an accused. The same has been done," read the petition.

Umesh Pal and one of his two armed security escorts were shot dead in Prayagraj's Sulem Saray area on February 24. Several rounds were fired and bombs were hurled at Umesh and his gunners. (ANI)