Ex-SP MP Atiq Ahmed Sentenced to Life Imprisonment in Umesh Pal Kidnapping Case

An MP-MLA court in Prayagraj on Tuesday, 28 March, pronounced former Samajwadi Party MP Aitq Ahmed guilty and sentenced him to life imprisonment in Umesh Pal kidnapping case of 2006.

(Photo: PTI)

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An MP-MLA court in Prayagraj on Tuesday, 28 March, pronounced former Samajwadi Party MP Aitq Ahmed guilty and sentenced him to life imprisonment in the Umesh Pal kidnapping case of 2006.

The court also held Saulat Hanif, a lawyer, and Dinesh Pasi guilty in the case, and sentenced them to life imprisonment, government counsel Gulab Chandra Agrahari said.

Agrahari further added that seven others, including Ahmed's brother Khalid Azim alias Ashraf, have been acquitted in the case.

What's the case? Umesh Pal, an eyewitness in the BSP MLA Raju Pal’s murder case of 2005, had alleged that when he refused to retract and buckle under pressure from Ahmed, he was kidnapped at gunpoint in February 2006, reported news agency PTI.

• Ahmed is also a prime accused in the 2005 Raju Pal murder case.

• Following Pal's allegations, a First Information Report was registered against Ahmed, his brother, and others in July 2007

• Umesh Pal was shot dead outside his residence in Prayagraj on 24 February 2023

• Ahmed and Ashraf are also accused of being involved in a conspiracy, while they were both in prison, to kill Umesh Pal, reported PTI.

More details: Earlier on Tuesday, the Supreme Court dismissed Ahmed's plea seeking protection while he was in the custody of Uttar Pradesh Police.

• Ahmed, in his plea, claimed his life is under threat while being in the custody of UP police

• A bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and Bela M Trivedi asked Ahmed to approach the High Court