Hand over Mukhtar Ansari to UP in 14 days: SC to Punjab

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Punjab government to hand over the custody of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, currently lodged in Rupnagar jail, to Uttar Pradesh Police within 14 days.

Ansari, a BSP MLA from Mau, is facing trial in 10 cases involving heinous crimes ranging from murder, extortion, cheating and fraud under the Gangster Act, in UP. In 2019, he was brought to Rupnagar jail in connection with an alleged extortion case in Mohali.

The court’s directive came on a plea by the UP government, seeking a direction to the Punjab government and Rupnagar jail authority to immediately hand over the custody of the legislator.

The court, however, rejected the UP government’s plea, seeking transfer of the extortion case from Punjab to it. It also dismissed Ansari’s petition seeking transfer of cases filed in UP to some other state.

A bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan and R Subhash Reddy directed the Punjab government to hand over the custody of Ansari to Banda jail authorities in UP. “In our opinion, a convict or an undertrial prisoner, who disobeys the law of the land, canof not oppose his transfer from one prison to another… Courts are not to be a helpless bystander, when the rule of law is being challenged with impunity. In such situations, this court can exercise power under Article 142 the Constitution of India to order transfer of prisoner from one prison to another,” the bench observed. “Custody is denied to the Police of Uttar Pradesh at every time on trivial grounds under guise of medical grounds by mentioning ordinary diseases,” the bench added.

The UP government earlier contended that Ansari had been “dodging” the judicial system and was continuing with his alleged illegal activities from Rupnagar. The Yogi Adityanathled government also alleged in the SC that there is a “collusion” between Ansari and Punjab Police. Refuting the claims, the Amarinder Singh government raised questions over the maintainability of the plea filed by UP. On March 4, it informed the SC that the UP government did not have the fundamental right to seek Ansari’s transfer. Due to his stay in Punjab jail, multiple trials pending against him before the Special MP/MLA court in Allahabad were adjourned. The warrants issued by the UP courts were also not entertained by Punjab jail authorities citing the “ill health” of the accused.

Director general of UP (prisons) Anand Kumar said: “We are well prepared to lodge any undertrial or criminal as all security arrangements are available in UP jails.”

Mukhtar Ansari