Yogi govt shifts around 100 bahubalis from various UP jails

Around 100 'bahubalis' or gangsters have been shifted to prisons far away from their home districts in Uttar Pradesh in an attempt by the Yogi Adityanath government to smash their local crime network.

Prominent among them are Mukhtar Ansari, Munna Bajrangi, Atiq Ahmed, Shekhar Tiwari, Maulana Anwarul Haq, Mukim alias Kala, Udaibhan Singh alias doctor, Titu alias Kiranpal, Rocky alias Kaki and Alam Singh.

"Though the dons are behind bars, their gangs let loose a reign of terror committing murders, kidnapping, dacoity and extortion with ease," Additional Director General of Police (Prison) GL Meena said. While around 100 jail inmates have been shifted from one jail to another across the state, those admitted to various mental hospitals in Agra, Varanasi and Bareilly are being verified, and if they are mentally fit to serve the jail term, they will be shifted back to jails, he said. The jail administration on Saturday sent letters to mental asylums in Varanasi, Agra and Bareilly, directing them to send a report about the health status of the undertrials.

Till now, 18 such jail inmates, who were admitted to various mental hospitals, have been identified. "The process of issuing arrest warrants for these inmates has started," he said.

Meena said the jail administration had prepared the list of the undertrials who are admitted to hospitals across the state.

"I have sought a report from the medical officers of the hospitals in which the undertrials, majority of them notorious criminals, are admitted," he said.

"Fearing that they will be caught, the doctors have started discharging the undertrials," Meena said. The jail administration often received information that the gang members used to meet in jail and plan incidents of crime from there.

During surprise raids, mobile phones and SIM cards were recovered from the cells of criminals.

A bahubali's call from jail is enough to send shivers down the spine of businessmen, contractors and even government officers and those refusing to abide their diktats are threatened, attacked or killed.MPost