The daring shoot-out of gangster Atiq Ahmed and his brother in front of cameras was carried out by three small-time sheeters in their twenties. We look at their histories, as investigations continue.
As the killings of Atiq Ahmed and his brother on camera continue to capture national attention, three more men who helped the shooters pose as reporters were detained on Thursday, the police said. Lovelesh Tiwari, Arun Maurya and Sunny Singh, while in police custody, are very much still under the glaring spotlights of the nation.
Outlook profiles the three daring killers who shot Ahmed and his brother over twenty times before surrendering to police, and capitulating themselves into the national spotlight, just as they wanted, police revealed from preliminary interrogations of the shooters.
Sunny Singh (23)
With over a dozen cases registered against him, Sunny Singh alias Mohit, from Hamirpur was the central figure, who planned the operation. He brought Tiwari and Maurya, the other two together.
Singh was a student at Lucknow University, who dropped out in his first year. Singh who earlier worked in a tea stall, and then on a truck, made his way into the Bhati gang. There, the left-handed shooter shot Babu Yadav and was jailed under the Arms Act at Banda District Jail, where he met Lovelesh Tiwari who was also in jail under POCSO at the time.
Back in his home district, neighbours and family said he had lost connection with him a long while back. A neighbour said he had not been living there for over ten years, a prolific sheeter at Kurara police station. He also spent time with Lovelesh in the NCR and met Maurya, the youngest shooter in Panipat.
Locals claimed he had been normal, but after he was first jailed for a brawl, his mentality changed and he entered the world of crime.
Inspired by Lawrence Bishnoi, Singh planned the operation, dreaming of a ‘big kill’ like Sidhu Moosewala’s shooting.
Their modus operandi was similar to the Bishnoi gang, the weapons recovered from them were the same Turkish Ziggana 9 mm pistols worth over ₹7 lakh, used by the Bishnoi gang.
Questions have been raised about how the three obtained such weaponry, as police noted that the sale and trafficking of such high-grade weapons were heavily regulated and controlled, pointing towards a larger conspiracy.
Lovelesh Tiwari (22)
The only one injured in the crossfire, a 12th pass-out, with four cases registered against him, Tiwari was jailed for slapping a girl and sent to Banda District Jail under POCSO, where he met Sunny Singh. Police said he had other cases registered against him pertaining to assault, excise and molestation.
According to his Facebook profile, Tiwari was a 'Zila Shah Pramukh' in the Bajrang Dal, hailing from Banda. Back home, a similar story was recounted by locals and family. Lovelesh was the rogue son, two of his brothers were priests and another was still studying, a resident recounted. Tiwari was not in touch or on terms with his people, and the resident noted that he had earlier gone to jail for an eve-teasing case, the same one through which he met Singh at Banda District Jail.
“He had big ambitions in the world of crime”, the resident finished. Sources added that Tiwari, an alcoholic and drug addict already ran a gang of over 50 boys, and wanted to make a big name for himself, just like Singh and Maurya, which brought all three together.
Arun Maurya (18)
The youngest of the shooters, hailing from Baghela Pukhta village in Kasganj. Arun Maurya was an orphan, and a mystery to locals and family alike. Maurya alias Kalia left his village over 15 years ago and never returned home. Laxmi, Maurya’s aunt told the media that he had left at the age of 10 or 11, after the death of his parents and had two brothers in the scrap business in Delhi. Yet, no one knew where Maurya lived or what he did.
Maurya met Sunny Singh in Panipat who inducted him into the world of crime. After their meeting, a source revealed Singh and Maurya met Sodhi, a Meerut resident who provided them with foreign pistols.
His aunt, Laxmi was not aware of the crime he had committed in Prayagraj
Coming together
All three small-timers in their twenties with big dreams were brought together by Singh, with an ambition to make a name for themselves. They were clearly inspired by Lawrence Bishnoi and well-trained. It was the first time the three had worked together, police statements said, unable to find any previous records.
They trailed their targets, posing as journalists for an entire day before carrying out their audacious mission. Remanded to police custody and shifted to a high-security jail in Pratapgarh over security concerns, they achieved the notoriety they had been looking for.
However, as three more men helped train them to pose as journalists on Thursday, and even helped Tiwari obtain a camera, questions have been raised about a larger conspiracy at play, from the high-grade weapons they used to the information they had on hand, and how easily they were able to carry out their mission.
While their histories reveal little other than a template of small-time gangsters, perhaps further investigation will unravel a larger picture of the real histories and connections of these three to bigger players.