Atiq Ahmed and Ashraf killings: Assailants used banned Turkish Zigana pistols that fire smoothly

LUCKNOW: The assailants of don-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were carrying Turkish Zigana F semi-automatic pistols that can fire 15 rounds of 9mm bullets.
The killers Luvlesh Tiwari, Mohit Singh and Arun Maurya threw down their weapons immediately after shooting dead the duo in Prayagraj on Saturday night and surrendered.
Mohit is a sharpshooter of the Sundar Bhati gang and he met Luvlesh in Chitrakoot jail where they served time in 2021. “Arun knew Mohit through his sources in the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and he is a crack shot too,” a police source said.

A day after the killings, the firepower of their weapons is being discussed widely. Made by TISAS, a firearm manufacturing company in Turkiye, the pistol is banned in India but appears to have become a preferred choice of weapon for gangsters.
It is known to be highly accurate, weighs less than other pistols and its polymer grip makes it easier to hold and comfortable to shoot. “Country made pistols overheat and jam after about five rounds. But the Zigana fires smoothly and the entire magazine can be emptied out without a glitch,” a ballistic expert said.

The Zigana has several variants, with a price range of Rs 6 lakh to Rs 7 lakh.
According to a senior police officer, sharpshooter Anshu Dixit used a Zigana in the 2021 shootout inside Chitrakoot jail to kill criminals Muqeem Kala and Merajuddin. Dixit was also killed in the prison shooting, but his autopsy report didn’t show any finger burns despite firing many rounds, suggesting the Zigana didn’t overheat, a forensics expert said.
In 2021, Punjab police had seized 48 foreign-made pistols—including 19 Ziganas—from an arms smuggler allegedly having links with Pakistan-based terrorist outfits.