Mukhtar’s jail barrack sealed, medical report submitted to court

Ahead of the judicial inquiry into death of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, his barrack and CCTV footage were sealed in the Banda division jail on Saturday.

In addition, senior jail superintendent Viresh Raj Sharma submitted a report in the MP/MLA court about the medical history and treatment given to Ansari.

The court had asked for a detailed report of Ansari’s condition and the measures taken by the jail authorities.

After Ansari’s death on Thursday night, chief judicial magistrate, Banda, Bhagwan Das Gupta ordered an investigation by additional chief judicial magistrate, MP/MLA court, Garima Singh on Friday, asking her to complete the probe in 30 days.

A review committee comprising district magistrate Durga Shakti Nagpal, Banda SP Ankur Agarwal, district judge Babbu Sarang, along with the chief judicial magistrate, went to the Banda jail on Saturday morning.

During their 45-minute stay, the officials went through the records, visited the high-security barrack number 16 in which Mukhtar was kept and saw the CCTV footage, according to those privy to the matter. Both the barrack and the footage have been sealed, said the officials, adding that the team members also examined the utensils that were in use of Ansari.

Senior jail superintendent Viresh Raj Sharma said the inspection was a routine one that is carried out every three months by the review committee. Each district has this committee, which is headed by the district judge, CJM is the member-secretary while DM and the SP are the members. Its primary responsibility is to conduct inspection in the jail every three months.

“The committee visited the high security barrack and went through the CCTV footage,” he said, adding that he also submitted his report in the MP/MLA court.

In the last 48 hours, the process to record statements of a jailor and 10 wardens, who were assigned duty in barrack 16, was carried out. Their statements have been sent to the UP prisons headquarters in Lucknow.

Son signs panchnama under protest

When asked to sign the panchnama, a document that records the evidence and findings which a police officer makes at the scene of crime or after a death, Mukhtar Ansari’s son Umar refused on the ground that he was dissatisfied with the autopsy process.

After his initial refusal, the other witnesses, his cousins Ibrahim and Usman, lawyers Chandra Bhan Yadav and Naseem Haider followed suit.

The authorities then agreed to allow Umar to sign the panchnama under protest.

Umar wrote on the panchnama, “You have done everything according to your own will, everything is manipulated. My father was murdered by poisoning, he was tortured, he was not given treatment, and his death is not natural.”

Umar had submitted a seven-point letter to the district magistrate for an autopsy by panel of AIIMS doctors on Friday. He also this mentioned this in the panchnama.

He also stated that his father was admitted in the ICU on March 26-27 for 14 hours, released and sent back abruptly to jail. Instead of jail, he could have been kept in the general ward, Umar said.