Court to deliver verdict against Mukhtar Ansari on June 5

 The court of special judge (MP-MLA) Avanish Gautam here will deliver verdict in the 1991 Avadhesh Rai murder case on June 5.

Jailed mafia don Mukhtar Ansari and four others are accused in the case.

Complainant and Congress party's provincial unit president Ajay Rai's lawyer Anuj Yadav and Mukhtar's lawyer Shrinath Tripathi filed their written arguments, after which the court reserved its order and fixed June 5 as the date to deliver it.

Tripathi told reporters that written arguments made by him during the trial were submitted before the court on Monday while Yadav said he had already submitted his written argument earlier.

During Monday's proceedings, Mukhtar had appeared before the court through video conferencing from Banda jail.

Avadhesh Rai was sprayed with bullets on August 3, 1991 while he was standing at the gate of his house in the Lahurabir area of Varanasi.

After the incident, his brother Ajay Rai had lodged a named FIR against Mukhtar, Bheem Singh, former MLA late Abdul Kalam, Rakesh Nyayik and two others.

In December 2022, Ghazipur court had awarded 10-year imprisonment for jailed mafia don Mukhtar Ansari in a 1996 Gangsters Act case.

Apart from four cases, including Rajendra Singh murder case with the Cantt police in Varanasi, Vashishth Tiwari a.k.a. Mala Guru murder case with Kotwali Ghazipur in 1988, constable Raghuvansh Singh murder case in Mughalsarai of �Chandauli in 1991 and murderous attack on additional superintendent of police and other policemen in Kotwali Ghazipur in 1996, the Avadhesh Rai murder case in Chetganj of Varanasi had also been made the base for booking Mukhtar and Bheem under Gangsters Act in 1996. [IANS/JS]