Gangster Sanjeev Jeeva, close aide of Mukhtar Ansari, shot dead in Lucknow court

Gangster Sanjeev Jeeva was shot dead outside the Lucknow Civil Court on Wednesday. The attacker who shot at him was reportedly dressed as a lawyer.

Lucknow: Mukhtar Ansari's close aide Sanjeev Maheswari Jeeva was shot dead on Lucknow Civil Court premises on Wednesday. Jeeva was the co-accused in the 1997 Brahmadutt Dwivedi murder case. A child and a policeman were also injured in the attack.

The attacker had come into the court disguised as a lawyer. He fired six rounds at Sanjeev Jeeva killing him on the spot. The alleged assailant was caught on the spot after the shooting right outside the courtroom, police said.

Jeeva had been brought to Lucknow court for a hearing as he had been booked in several other criminal cases as well. Soon after the incident, the attackers managed to flee from the spot. The girl and the police constable who sustained gunshot injuries in the shooting were rushed to hospital, the officials said, adding the child's condition was critical while the constable was in a stable state.

Sanjeev Jeeva was associated with Mukhtar Ansari and Munna Bajrangi gang. Bajrangi was killed in 2018 in Baghpat prison. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has directed to constitute a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the incident. The SIT, which has been asked to complete the probe within a week, will be headed by ADG (Technical) Mohit Agarwal, government officials said, adding that other members of the team are IPS officer Neelabja Chowdhary and IG (Ayodhya range) Praveen Kumar.

Brahm Dutta Dwivedi, along with his gunner, was killed on February 10, 1997, in Farrukhabad district. A trial court on July 17, 2003, convicted Jeeva for commissioning the killing of Dwivedi and his gunner and also committing a murderous assault on his driver. The court sentenced Jeeva to life imprisonment in the case.

Following the shooting incident on the court premises on Wednesday, advocates staged a protest against the state police, accusing it of failing to ensure law and order and beefing up stricter security arrangements. "Jeeva was waiting in the corridor just outside a special ADJ (Additional District Judge) court where he was to appear, when the assailant opened fire," said Additional Director General (Lucknow Zone) Piyush Mordia.

The incident comes hardly two months after gangster-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were gunned down by three assailants while being taken in police custody to hospital for a medical examination in Prayagraj on April 15. Opposition parties have hit out at the government over Wednesday's incident.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav at a press conference here in the evening said that the law and order situation in the state has worsen. "It seems that the BJP government has given a free hand to criminals who kill whomever they want, wherever they want. Murders are happening in police custody, police station and court. People are not safe anywhere in Uttar Pradesh," said the former chief minister.

Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati tweeted in Hindi, "The sensational shooting that resulted in a murder inside the Lucknow court premises is a big challenge for the government in terms of law and order and crime control in UP. There is panic among the public due to such incidents. Government should take strict steps, this is the demand of BSP."