Jailed don Mukhtar Ansari dies after cardiac arrest

LUCKNOW: Gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, 63, went into cardiac arrest and died during treatment at Banda medical college on Thursday night.
A senior police officer said he was taken unconscious to the emergency department of Rani Durgavati Medical College, Banda, by jail staff on Thursday after he complained of nausea. He was provided immediate medical care by a team of nine doctors but, despite their best efforts, Ansari could not be saved, the hospital’s medical bulletin said.A five-time former MLA from Mau Sadar seat, Ansari had been behind bars in UP & Punjab since 2005. There was heavy police deployment outside the hospital shortly after Ansari was taken there.
Prohibitory orders under CrPC Sec 144 were imposed across UP following Ansari’s death, UP DGP Prashant Kumar said, adding there was special deployment of cops in Banda, Mau, Ghazipur and Varanasi districts.Ansari being slow poisoned: Lawyer in plea last week
On Tuesday morning, Mukhtar Ansari was found unconscious and was referred to the district hospital. He had complained of pain in the abdomen and constipation. He was provided treatment and discharged 15 hours later.
His brother, Ghazipur MP Afzal Ansari, had gone on Tuesday to the hospital and alleged that his brother had been poisoned in jail. Last week, Mukhtar’s lawyer Randheer Singh Suman had moved an application before a Barabanki court seeking a proper medical examination and alleging that “slow poisoning” was being administered to him by Banda prison staff. Ansari had over 60 criminal cases pending against him.
On March 13, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in a case related to the use of forged documents for obtaining an arms licence in 1990. This was the eighth case in which the ex-MLA was convicted and sentenced by a court in UP in the past two years.

SP condoled Ansari’s death. “Sad demise of former MLA Shri Mukhtar Ansari. May his soul rest in peace. May the bereaved family members get the strength to bear this immense loss. Humble tribute,” the party said in a post in Hindi on X.