Following gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari’s demise due to a cardiac arrest, his body was brought to his residence in Ghazipur for final rites amidst stringent police presence as overseen by the district administration.
According to Mukhtar Ansari’s elder brother, Sibgatullah Ansari, the last rites are scheduled for Saturday, as there was a delay in receiving the body, necessitating the postponement of the ceremony to the following morning. Sibgatullah Ansari appealed for prayers for his late brother.
Earlier, Mukhtar Ansari’s body was transferred from Banda to Ghazipur after undergoing post-mortem at Banda Medical College and Hospital. Ansari passed away at a hospital in Banda, Uttar Pradesh, on Thursday.
Meanwhile, a three-member team has been assigned to conduct a magisterial investigation into Ansari’s death, following orders issued by the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Banda. This investigative panel, inclusive of two doctors, will conduct the post-mortem, which will be recorded on video.
Umar Ansari, Mukhtar Ansari’s son, expressed his preference for the post-mortem to be conducted by doctors at AIIMS, Delhi, citing distrust in the local medical system and administration. He expressed suspicion about the circumstances surrounding his father’s death, stating a belief that it was not a natural demise but a planned murder.
According to the hospital’s official statement, Ansari was admitted around 8:25 pm on Thursday and attended to by a team of nine doctors before his passing.
Sibgatullah Ansari alleged that the administration failed to inform him directly about his brother’s demise, with the news reaching him through the media. Earlier, Umar Ansari had asserted that his father was “poisoned” and vowed to seek justice through legal means.
In April 2023, Mukhtar Ansari was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison for the murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai by an MP-MLA court. Subsequently, on March 13, 2024, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in a case involving the use of forged documents to obtain an arms license in 1990.