FIR lodged against jail officials in UP's Banda over illegal release of gangster

Banda (UP), Feb 4 (PTI) An FIR has been registered against the suspended jail superintendent and jailer of Banda district jail for the alleged illegal release of Noida gangster Ravi Nagar alias Ravindra Singh, police said on Wednesday.

Superintendent of Police Palash Bansal said the case was registered at Banda city Kotwali on Tuesday under Section 260 (intentional omission to apprehend on part of public servant bound to apprehend person under sentence or lawfully committed) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on the basis of a complaint submitted by the in-charge of the jail outpost.

"A special investigation team headed by an additional superintendent of police has been constituted to probe the sensitive matter and examine the circumstances under which the gangster was released from jail," Bansal added.

Ravi Nagar alias Ravi Kana, a scrap mafia and gang leader from Gautam Buddh Nagar, has a long criminal history and was lodged in Banda jail in connection with multiple serious cases registered against him in western Uttar Pradesh.

According to Noida Police, Kana is the leader of an organised criminal gang registered as D-190 in the Gautam Buddh Nagar police commissionerate, with 18 gang members and a total of 29 criminal cases against him, while 131 cases are registered collectively against his gang.

Police said the gang was involved in organised crimes, including theft and loot of scrap and steel, extortion, intimidation of traders and builders, and accumulation of huge illegal wealth through benami properties across Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahr and the Delhi-NCR region.

Under provisions of the Gangster Act, movable and immovable assets worth over Rs 92.65 crore belonging to Kana, his family members and associated firms were attached on court orders issued between February and November 2024, police said.

The seized assets include industrial plots in Greater Noida, land in Bulandshahr, dozens of commercial vehicles, bank accounts and several companies allegedly used to launder proceeds of crime, officials said.

Noida Police said Kana had earlier obtained anticipatory bail from the Allahabad High Court in a case registered at Ecotech-3 police station in 2023, subject to conditions, including surrender of his passport and cooperation with the investigation.

However, he violated the bail conditions and allegedly fled abroad on January 1, 2024, without depositing his passport.

Following this, a Red Corner Notice was issued against him on January 4, 2024, and he was arrested upon arrival at the Delhi airport on April 24, 2024, after which he was sent to jail, police said. PTI COR/KIS DV DV