Gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed, who was shot dead in April, was mentioned in the obituary list for MPs and former members in Lok Sabha’s monsoon session. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla read out the obituaries of two sitting MPs and 11 former MPs, including Atiq Ahmed. Birla mentioned that Atiq Ahmed was a member of the 14th Lok Sabha and died at the age of 60 in Prayagraj on April 15, 2023.
After reading the obituaries, Birla expressed condolences to the families and the members in Lok Sabha observed a moment of silence. Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were killed by three men pretending to be journalists while they were being taken for a medical check-up. The killers claimed they wanted to become famous in the underworld by eliminating Atiq Ahmed.
Atiq and Ashraf were murdered shortly after Atiq’s nephew, Asad Ahmed, was killed in a police encounter. Atiq had sought protection from the Supreme Court, fearing he would be falsely implicated in the murder of advocate Umesh Pal and could be killed in a fake police encounter. Atiq had a long criminal record with over 90 cases, including murder, kidnapping, extortion, and assaulting a professor at Allahabad University in 2018.
