Atiq Ahmed murder: Shooters wanted to become big gangsters; used Zigana-made pistols

Three shooters killed Atiq Ahmed and Ashraf as they wanted to become big gangsters, India Today reported on Sunday. Three shooters - identified as Lovelesh Tiwari, Arun Maurya, and Sunny Singh - shot dead Atiq and his brother at point-blank range on Saturday night while police personnel were escorting them to a medical college in Prayagraj.

During the interrogation, all three revealed that they wanted to kill Atiq and Ashraf's gang and make a name for themselves in the state so that they could benefit in the future. They could not estimate the police's tight surveillance and could not escape after committing the crime, the report said.

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They had been waiting for the right opportunity to eliminate them and had disguised themselves as media persons, but they could not find the right time until Saturday when they carried out the incident.

India Today reported that Zigana-made pistols were used in the killing of Atiq and Ashraf, which are considered illegal and banned in India. The price of these pistols is around 6 to 7 lakhs rupees. Lovelesh Tiwari was released from jail about 6 months ago. Sunny, from Hamirpur, has connections with a big gang and gangsters.

All three shooters have a criminal background, the report said. Sunny Singh, one of the shooters, is a history sheeter of Kurara police station in Hamirpur. He had not visited his home for the past 10 years. He has three brothers, one of whom has died, and the other brother, Pintu Singh, lives at home and runs a tea shop.

Sunny Singh's brother Pintu Singh said there were cases registered against the former. "He did not do anything for a living. I was not aware that my brother is involved in the killing of Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf," he said.

Lovelesh Tiwari's father Yagya Tiwari said the family had no information about how he reached there. "We didn't mean anything to him...He is a drug addict...We don't know anything about him," he said. Lovelesh was also booked in a case in the past. According to reports, a case of slapping a girl is registered against him.

The police team has reached the residence of the accused Arun Maurya. Arun was allegedly involved in a murder case and had not been living with the family for the last 5-6 years. Arun alias Kalia is from Kasganj in Uttar Pradesh. He is a resident of Baghela Pukhta village in the Soro Thana area. Arun's father's name is being reported as Hiralal. He had fled his village after allegedly murdering a police officer at GRP station. Arun's parents passed away fifteen years ago.

This morning, the police raided the hotel where they had stayed in Prayagraj. They had been staying in the hotel for 48 hours.

During the interrogation, all three revealed that they wanted to eliminate Atiq and Ashraf's gang and make a name for themselves in the state so that they could benefit in the future. They could not estimate the police's tight surveillance and could not escape after committing the crime.

(With inputs from Arvind Ojha)