Banda/Lucknow: Jailed gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari died at the Banda Medical College in Uttar Pradesh Thursday following a cardiac arrest, its principal said.
Earlier in the day, Ansari was taken to the hospital from the Banda district jail after his health deteriorated.
Banda Medical College principal Suneel Kaushal told PTI over phone that Ansari died following a cardiac arrest at the facility.
There was a heavy deployment of police personnel outside the hospital shortly after Ansari was taken there.
Prohibitory orders under section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), which bars large gatherings, were imposed across Uttar Pradesh following Ansari’s death, Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police Prashant Kumar said.
There is a special deployment of police personnel in Banda, Mau, Ghazipur and Varanasi districts, he added.
He was hospitalised for around 14 hours on Tuesday after he complained of abdominal pain.
Ansari, 63, was a five-time former MLA from Mau Sadar seat and was behind bars in UP and Punjab since 2005. He had over 60 criminal cases pending against him. He was sentenced in eight cases since September 2022 by different courts of Uttar Pradesh and was lodged in the Banda jail.
His name was on the list of 66 gangsters issued by Uttar Pradesh Police last year.
Earlier, his brother and Ghazipur MP Afzal Ansari, alleged that he was given poison in jail.
The Samajwadi Party 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.
PTI