The Uttar Pradesh Police have registered a criminal case against Ghazipur MP Afzal Ansari, two former district arms clerks and others after an investigation into arms licences linked to the IS-191 gang of late mafia don Mukhtar Ansari allegedly uncovered missing official records, irregularities in weapon transactions and an untraceable rifle purchased on the MP’s licence, senior police officials said on Wednesday.
Event Context
The case marks the first FIR arising out of an extensive verification drive ordered by deputy inspector general of police, Varanasi Range, Vaibhav Krishna, to scrutinise arms licences issued to Mukhtar Ansari, his family members and associates as part of the ongoing crackdown on organised crime and mafia networks.
Ghazipur superintendent of police Iraj Raja said Kotwali police station registered the case against Afzal Ansari, former first arms clerk Asfaq Ahmed and former second arms clerk Gauri Shankar Ram under sections 409 (criminal breach of trust) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code, along with sections 21/25 and 30 of the Arms Act.
Team Analysis
“As part of the verification, the teams travelled across several districts in UP as well as Delhi, Punjab and Arunachal Pradesh, where they examined records maintained in district magistrates’ offices and licensed arms dealerships to trace the movement and present status of the firearms,” Raja said.
Match Outlook
The inquiry allegedly found that several original arms licence files and records relating to the purchase and sale of weapons connected with Ghazipur district were missing from the district magistrate’s record room. Investigators also claimed that physical verification revealed irregularities in weapon transactions, while the present whereabouts of some firearms could not be established.
“The investigation indicates that the original arms licence files and purchase-sale records were made to disappear from the district magistrate’s office through criminal conspiracy and collusion with the then arms clerks. The allegedly objective was to conceal the records and facilitate the use of these weapons by members of the IS-191 gang for criminal activities,” Raja said.
Police said verification of the remaining arms licences and firearms is continuing, and additional criminal cases will be registered wherever similar irregularities are detected.
source
According to the SP, police teams led by the additional superintendents of police (city and rural), along with circle officers and station house officers, have been carrying out physical verification of 145 firearms purchased against 51 arms licences issued to members and associates of the IS-191 gang. The exercise also covers weapons licensed to Mukhtar Ansari, who died in Banda jail on March 28, 2024, and his family members.
The first FIR relates to arms licence No. 1188/P2 issued to Afzal Ansari. According to police, the original licence file and the purchase-sale records linked to the licence were found missing from the archives. Investigators also failed to establish the present status of rifle No. 830405, which was allegedly purchased using the licence.
“The investigation and verification revealed that the licence file and related records had disappeared from the record room through conspiracy and collusion involving the licence holder and the concerned arms clerks. The whereabouts of the rifle purchased under the licence are still unknown,” the SP said.
