April 16 (UPI) — A former Indian politician and his brother were shot dead on live TV on Saturday while flanked by police on the way to a nearby hospital for a checkup after he was jailed for a kidnapping plot.
Atiq Ahmed, who served in the Indian parliament from 2004 to 2009, was being escorted to a hospital in Prayagraj when he was surrounded by journalists seeking to interview him before his scheduled appointment, The Times of India reported.
Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were shot dead and police arrested two suspects and an alleged associate identified as Luvlesh Tiwari, Sunny and Arun Maury — who the BBC reported had been posing as journalists.
Witnesses reported hearing at least 14 rounds being fired in about 22 seconds, The Times of India reported. The alleged shooters were heard shouting “Jai Shri Ram” after they were detained, a phrase used by Hindus that means “Victory to Lord Rama.”
The news came after Ahmed’s teenage son Asad was killed in a shoot-out with police earlier this week along with another man.
Local news outlets have described Ahmed as a “jailed gangster” and “gangster-turned-politician.” Ahmed was jailed in 2019 after he was convicted of kidnapping and was facing murder and assault charges, according to the BBC.
He had alleged in a petition to the country’s Supreme Court last month that there was a threat to his life from police.
