The three suspected attackers who reportedly shot Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf Ahmed have had their judicial custody extended till 14th July. The three defendants—Lovelesh Tiwari, Arun Maurya, and Sunny Singh—were introduced via video conference Monday evening before Chief Judicial Magistrate Prayagraj, who prolonged their judicial detention. On the evening of 15 April, this year, Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf Ahmed were murdered and killed in Prayagraj while being taken for a medical examination by persons posing as journalists.
Atiq Ahmed was charged with the 2005 murder of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA Raju Pal as well as the February 2018 murder of Umesh Pal, a crucial witness in that case.
The Uttar Pradesh government informed the Supreme Court in a status report it submitted on Sunday on the Atiq Ahmed death case that police reform and modernization efforts are in progress and that handcuffing directives have been given to prevent the quick escape of seasoned offenders.
Uttar Pradesh has informed the Supreme Court that its police department has undergone a comprehensive modernization process. This includes the acquisition of medium-sized prison vans, drones, body-worn cameras, post-mortem kits, full-body protectors for women, radio equipment, security equipment, ATS-related equipment, and various vehicles. The grants were approved by Government of india and Utttar pradesh government. The Chargesheet were filed in connection with this matter.
The state government has given instructions to follow the witness protection scheme. Handcuffing instructions have also been issued to prevent the easy escape of hardened criminals, the state government informed the top court.