BIG GUNS AT A GLANCE
UP’s powerful gangsters are accused of murder, dacoity, kidnapping, extortion and land grabs
Mukhtar Ansari Eastern UP MLA for Mau and in jail for over 13 years
Accused in the murder of former BJP legislator Krishnanand Rai and contractors in 2005. At least 10 people fired at the MLA’s motorcade killing seven people, including Rai, in Ghazipur district after he defeated Ansari’s elder brother and five-time legislator Afzal Ansari from Mohammadabad constituency in the 2002 assembly elections. Ansari was accused of hatching the plot in jail.
Babli Kol Chitrakoot and Bundelkhand in UP and Madhya Pradesh Carries a reward of ~5 lakh
Dacoity, murder, kidnapping, extortion and tendu leaf smuggling. After ganglord Shiv Kumar Patel alias Dadua was killed in July 2007, dacoit Babli Kol became undisputed crime king of Bundelkhand with over 47 cases of dacoity, loot, murder and kidnapping. Kol’s gang controls the lucrative tendu leaf trade in Chitrakoot, Banda and parts of Madhya Pradesh. He is ruthless and killed a farmer in Jhansi district last September for not paying rangdari, or extortion money.
Brijesh Simgh Eastern UP and Bihar Independent MLC for Varanasi from 2017 and in jail since 2008
Considered an arch-rival of Mukhtar Ansari, he is accused of multiple murders. His men are said to be involved in coal mining, railway construction, scrap disposal, public works and liquor business. Singh’s group allegedly ambushed Ansari’s convoy in Ghazipur in 2001 and killed three men. Singh was reportedly wounded in retaliatory fire and was presumed dead until Delhi police arrested him in Bhubaneswar in 2008.
Sundar Bhati Western UP, Haryana and parts of Delhi In Hamirpur jail since 2014
Bhati’s gang is involved in contract killings, extortion, scrap contracts, and grabbing properties. He started with the Satbeer Gujjar gang in the 1980s. Said to be operating from jail, his name cropped up in the murder of BJP leader Shiv Kumar Yadav in Noida recently. His gang is equipped with AK-47 and semi-auto ma ti cg pistols. A native of, Ghanghola village in Greater Noida, he contested assembly elections from Dadri as an Indian National Lok Dal candidate, but lost.
Prem Prakash Singh alias Munna Bajrangi Eastern UP and Bihar In Jhansi jail since 2009
Munna Bajrangi, known as Mukhtar Ansari’s sharpshooter, was accused of multiple murders, including that of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai. His gang members were involved in extortion, contract killing, land deals and government work contracts. He survived half-a-dozen bullets in a police shooting in 1998 and apparently became more brazen. He contested elections but lost. He was arrested in Mumbai in January 2009.
Randeep Bhati Western UP, Haryana and parts of Delhi
In Basti jail since 2015
His gang is involved in contract killings, extortion, kidnapping and illegal mining. Bhati is the leader of the Ritholi gang that he took over after brothers Naresh and Ranpal were killed in an internecine gunfight with the Sundar Bhati gang. Both gangs lost nearly 50 men in the rivalry since 2003. He has grown stronger with support from gangsters Anil Dujana, Amit Kasana and Mukeem Kala.
Atiq Ahmad Allahabad, Kaushambi and Sultanpur A former MP, he is lodged in Deoria jail for the past one year
Multiple criminal cases of kidnapping, murders, including that of Bahujan Samaj Party legislator Raju Pal in Allahabad. His gang was active in extortion, sand mining and land deals. Atiq was jailed for several years when the BSP was in power, but came out during the Samajwadi Party rule. He was arrested again for assaulting the staff of an agricultural university in February 2017.
Sushil Mooch Western UP, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan Fugitive; wanted in the murder of an elderly woman and her son in Meerut.
Contract killings. At 66, Sushil Mooch is the oldest ganglord in UP with more than 50 cases against him — the majority being murder. Though has been active for four decades, the police could get his photograph only in 2012 when he was arrested for a second time. He got bail, and is on the run. He is known for providing sharpshooters. Before his arrest, he was operating from Jaipur.