Farmers Movement Archive

Now, police in 3 west UP districts scramble to seize properties of gangsters

Meerut/Muzaffarnagar: Police teams in Baghpat, Meerut and Muzaffarnagar attached illicit properties of three gangsters -- Sunil Rathi, Yogesh Bhadora and Imlakh Baba – on Sunday.This comes a day after TOI reported a disparity in crackdown against gangsters in eastern and western parts of the state. In one of the most coordinated crackdowns against 25 dreaded criminals in the state, properties worth Rs 160 crore have either been attached or demolished in police and administrative action initiated against them. A lion’s share of the crackdown was dedicated against two criminals – Mukhtar Ansari, currently lodged in a jail in Punjab, and Atiq Ahmad, lodged in Ahmedabad jail, with Rs 65 crore each (total 130 crore) worth of properties owned by them or their associates now attached or demolished. Recently, in coordinated raids at 42 places in Lucknow targeting Mukhtar Ansari, Salim Rustam Sohrab, Khan Mubarak and Annu Triapthi gangs, 11 criminals were arrested and over two dozen detained. Arms, ammunition, explosives and satellite phones were among recoveries made during the raids. On the other hand, police in west UP districts were going slow on seizure of properties of the dons in the region. In police records, the action report for Meerut zone gangsters has little information on such properties or it says “information is being gathered about their assets”. However, after the TOI report, police swung into action and conducted multiple raids in many west UP districts.Land and property worth over Rs 27 crore belonging to gangster Imlakh Baba -- infamous for running fake certificates and exam cheating racket -- was seized by the local administration in Muzaffarnagar.Similarly, several properties of jailed gangster Sunil Rathi were seized in Baghpat after teams accompanied by heavy police forces reached his native place in Tikri village in Baghpat.A pond illegally occupied by dreaded gangster Yogesh Bhadora was made free of encroachment by a team of local police and revenue officials in Bhadora village in Meerut. Yogesh Bhadora, a known history-sheeter currently lodged in Siddharthnagar jail, has more than 40 cases against him. In Meerut, action was also taken against Ramesh Pradhan, a known liquor mafia with more than 27 cases against him. Involved in the sale and trafficking of illicit liquor for over 15 years, his property worth over 1 crore was seized in a crackdown.

The Times of India

2020-09-28

Meerut