Mukhtar backed fish trade mafia in police net in Kashi

Varanasi: In a drive against fish trade mafia elements patronised by jailed mafia don-turned-MLA Mukhtar Ansari, Varanasi police on Tuesday arrested four persons with 20 quintals of fish of banned species. Mau cops also arrested one person and announced cash rewards of Rs 25,000 on two others after booking them under Gangster Act.
SSP Varanasi Prabhakar Chawdhary said, “The Mukhtar-backed fish trade mafia Mohd Salim, who was arrested with two others on Monday, had divulged the names of those supplying prohibited species of fish Thai Mangur.After it, the joint team of police, food safety and drug administration and fishery department raided their places in Varanasi and adjoining districts.”
One joint team led by Lanka police succeeded in arresting Rambalak Sahani of Rohania, Gurucharan Singh of Lanka and Santosh Yadav of Chandauli, he said adding, another team under Shivpur cops arrested Viketar alias Viru of Undi area . But before the cops could raid the place of Maksood Alam in the Nadesar area, he managed to escape. At least 15 qt of Thai Mangur fish was recovered from the place of Viru while five quintal of fish of the same species was recovered from the place of Alam. The cost of recovered fish was over Rs 2.10 lakhs.
Chawdhary said all these arrested persons were procuring Thai Mangur consignments from Kolkata to supply it to Salim, who is a close associate of Mukhtar and works to enhance the economic empire of the jailed don. Salim’s gang has a monopoly in fish trade in the district for almost two decades and also extorts money for all fish traders by utilising the terror of Mukhtar.
He added, “This gang has not allowed the entry of others in this trade. They have all confessed to having met Mukhtar in the jail in the past.”
On Monday, Salim was arrested with his two accomplices following a raid of a joint team of police and other departments at Bunglow-51 of Cantonment area, where a pond full of fishes with prohibited species were recovered. According to police, Salim had taken guarantee of Mukhtar to seek bail from court in a murder case 20 years ago while he had also contested on former political party of don’s family Qaumi Ekta Dal in 2012 assembly polls.
Under their on-going drive against Mukhtar’s henchmen, the Mau cops initiated action against three fish trade mafia. SP Mau Anurag Arya said that one Mohd Ismail of Andhra Pradesh had been arrested while Parasnath Sonkar and Chhotai Sonkar of district were absconding. He said that all three had been booked under Gangster Act while cash rewards of Rs 25,000 had been announced on Parasnath and Chhotai each.
For the past few months the henchmen and gangs of criminals enjoying backing of Mukhtar and increasing the wealth of his empire are in the line of fire with the intensifying drive against organised crime by police in Varanasi zone. On June 26, Mau police had booked one Ankur Rai and nine other members of his gang under Gangster Act as the cops found that he assisted Mukhtar gang in its operation.
On May 31, Mau police announced cash rewards of Rs 25,000 on each of the 11 members of a gang involved in extorting money in the name of vehicle stands under Mukhtar’s patronage. Four of them were arrested on June 25.
Besides, the cops also cracked down on the operations of illegal slaughter houses and fish trade by Mukhtar’s henchmen.
Ghazipur police had also initiated action against Mukhtar’s henchmen, who had kept land of proposed airstrip at Andhau area for years.