Three inmates at Chitrakoot jail in Uttar Pradesh, including dreaded gangsters Mukim Kala and Merazuddin, were killed in a gang war that broke out inside the jail on May 14 (Friday). They were shot dead by sharpshooter Anshu Dixit, who was later killed by police as he refused to surrender. Taking serious note of the incident, Yogi Adityanath Government has ordered a probe.
According to a report by India Today, it has been learnt that three CCTV cameras installed in the Chitrakoot jail were not functioning at the time when the shootout took place. Due to this, The Uttar Pradesh government has suspended two jail officials, Jail Superintendent, S P Tripathi and Jailor Mahendra Pal. They were suspended on Friday on charges of laxity.
Later in the day, three warders, namely, Sanjay Khare, Harishankar Ram, and Amit Kumar were also suspended on similar charges.
Meanwhile, security in the premises has been beefed up after the incident. Additional forces have been called in and 20 jawans of the UP Police have been stationed inside the Chitrakoot jail.
Chitrakoot Jail shootout
On May 14, an inmate identified as Anshu Dixit shot dead two prisoners Mukim Kala and Merajuddin using a pistol at around 10 am. Both of them are close aides to don-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari. Mukim Kala was a gangster from Western UP and Merazuddin was a don from Easter UP. Anshu, a sharpshooter from Sitapur, was shot dead by police in a retaliatory firing.
DG Prisons Anand Kumar said that the entire sequence of events will be investigated to know how a pistol reached inside the prison.