Mukhtar Ansari (63) was a five-time MLA from Mau Sadar.  The gangster-turned-politician had over 60 criminal cases pending against him and had been in jail in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab since 2005.

Mukhtar Ansari Death: Umar Ansari, the son of deceased gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, Thursday, alleged that father was served poison-laced food in the prison which resulted in his demise. Hours after Mukhtar Ansari’s death due to cardiac arrest at a hospital in Uttar Pradesh’s Banda, Umar claimed his father died due to slow poison and the family was mulling to move the court in the matter.

“I was not told anything from the administration side, I came to know about it through the media… But now the whole nation knows everything… Two days ago I came to meet him, but I was not allowed… We said earlier also and even today we will say the same about the allegation of giving slow poison. On March 19, he was poisoned in the dinner. We will move to the judiciary, we have full faith in it,” Umar Ansari told the media following his father’s death.

Umar Ansari said that his father had claimed that he was served food laced with poison in the Banda jail which caused his health to deteriorate and ultimately led to his death.

Jailed gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari died of cardiac arrest at a hospital in UP’s Banda on Thursday, days after his health deteriorated in the prison amid allegations of poisoning.

On Thursday, Ansari was brought to Banda’s Rani Durgavati Medical College from the district jail in “an unconscious state” and, according to its principal Suneel Kaushal, he died at the hospital due to a cardiac arrest.

Earlier in the week, Ansari’s brother and Ghazipur MP Afzal Ansari had alleged that he was being subjected to “slow poisoning” in jail, a charge denied by the authorities.

Following his death, authorities imposed Section 144 CrPC across the state while additional security personnel deployed in the Banda, Mau, Ghazipur and Varanasi districts to prevent law and order issues.

Ansari’s body has been sent for post-mortem and will be handed over to family later today for last rites, officials said.

Who was Mukhtar Ansari?

Mukhtar Ansari (63) was a five-time MLA from Mau Sadar.  The gangster-turned-politician had over 60 criminal cases pending against him and had been in jail in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab since 2005.

Since September 2022, Ansari was sentenced in eight cases by  by different courts in Uttar Pradesh and was lodged in the Banda jail. His name was on the list of 66 gangsters issued by Uttar Pradesh Police last year.

Ansari, who hailed from Mau, was believed to have a strong influence in the adjoining Ghazipur and Varanasi districts as well.

Curbs imposed across UP

Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police Prashant Kumar said prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC were imposed across the state and teams of the Central Reserve Police Force along with the local police deployed in Banda, Mau, Ghazipur and Varanasi.

The social media cell of the Uttar Pradesh Police has also been activated to keep a close watch on unlawful elements online, the police chief said.

Mukhtar Ansari death

As per an official release, Mukhtar Ansari was brought to the medical college around 8.25 PM on Thursday in an unconscious state after he had complained of vomiting. A team of nine doctors attended to him but he died of cardiac arrest, it stated.

Officials at the police headquarters in Lucknow said Ansari’s post-mortem will be done in Banda and it will be videographed. The viscera will be preserved if needed, they said.

Earlier, Ansari was hospitalised for around 14 hours on Tuesday after he complained of abdominal pain.

Opposition leaders condole Ansari’s death, call for probe

Meanwhile, several opposition political leaders condoled Ansari’s demise. “I pray to Allah to forgive Mukhtar Ansari and give patience to his family and his loved ones. The people of Ghazipur lost their favourite son and brother,” AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said in his condolence message.

Owaisi alleged that Ansari was poisoned because he had “serious allegations against the administration”.

Despite this, the government did not pay any attention to his treatment. Condemnable and regrettable,” Owaisi wrote on X.

Samajwadi Party leader Ameeque Jamei demanded a thorough investigation of Mukhtar Ansari’s death.

“We stand with the family of Mukhtar Ansari… Recently he said that he can be murdered anytime… Why he was not given a proper medical facility…We will demand a thorough investigation of the incident…”

Congress leader Surendra Rajput also questioned the circumstances of Ansari’s demise.

“Today Mukhtar Ansari’s death in the jail raises a big question BJP-led UP Government…This should be investigated thoroughly so that everyone gets to know what is going on…” Rajput said.

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav also condoled Ansari’s death.

“Got the sad news of the demise of former UP MLA Shri Mukhtar Ansari. We pray to God to grant peace to the departed soul and strength to the bereaved family to bear the loss,” Tejashwi Yadav said in post in Hindi on X.

(With inputs from agencies)