Umar Ansari, the son of deceased gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, was arrested by the Ghazipur Police in Lucknow for allegedly creating fake documents related to a government-seized property. Police officials confirmed the arrest on Monday, stating that a case has been registered and further legal action is underway.
According to Ghazipur Superintendent of Police (SP), Umar forged the documents by falsely signing his mother's name, Afsa Ansari, in an attempt to reclaim or manipulate ownership over the confiscated property. The SP told news agency ANI, “Umar Ansari created fake documents for a seized property by 'forging the signature' of his mother, Afsa Ansari, who has a bounty of ₹50,000 on her.”
Authorities revealed that Afsa Ansari is currently on the run and has been declared absconding. Her name has been added to the case as investigators suspect her direct or indirect involvement in the attempted forgery.
The First Information Report (FIR) has been registered at Mohammadabad Police Station under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including charges related to forgery, criminal conspiracy, and use of fake documents. “Further legal proceedings are being conducted,” the SP confirmed.
The property in question is part of several assets linked to the Ansari family that were seized or frozen by the state government as part of an ongoing crackdown on illegal properties, money laundering, and criminal rackets once controlled by Mukhtar Ansari’s network. Over the past few years, the Uttar Pradesh Police and Enforcement Directorate (ED) have intensified efforts to dismantle the alleged financial and political empire associated with the late politician.
Umar’s father, Mukhtar Ansari, was a powerful figure in eastern Uttar Pradesh, known both as a five-time MLA from Mau and a notorious gangster facing more than 60 criminal cases, including murder, extortion, kidnapping, and land grabbing.
He died on March 28, 2024, at Banda Medical College Hospital, reportedly due to a cardiac arrest. His death came just two weeks after a court sentenced him to life imprisonment on March 13, 2024, for forgery and obtaining an arms licence illegally using fake documents back in 1990.
Mukhtar had already been convicted in multiple other cases before his death. Notably, in April 2023, he received a 10-year sentence for his involvement in the 2005 murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai, a case that drew national attention due to its political implications.
The arrest of Umar Ansari adds to the ongoing legal troubles for the Ansari family. Several properties linked to the family have been under investigation, and multiple family members are either facing trial or are under the scanner of enforcement agencies. Political analysts say that the state is determined to break the legacy of criminal-political nexus once represented by Mukhtar Ansari.
Law enforcement agencies have also been tracking illegal earnings, benami assets, and links to organized crime, which allegedly helped sustain the Ansaris' political hold in eastern Uttar Pradesh.
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