Prayagraj: “Main baat yeh hai ki Guddu Muslim…” (the main point is that Guddu Muslim…), gangster Ashraf Ahmed was heard saying Saturday night before he was shot dead mid-sentence together with his brother, don-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed.
Atiq and his brother were gunned down while speaking to reporters outside Colvin Hospital in Prayagraj, where police had taken them for a medical examination; three suspects have since been into custody. Ashraf’s reference to Guddu Muslim — one of the accused in the Umesh Pal murder case alongside Atiq — has sparked much speculation.
Known to police as a “bomb specialist” who allegedly has a long history of association with criminal gangs, Guddu is believed to have been a close aide of Atiq. In a widely circulated video of the daylight murder of Umesh Pal in February, he is seen throwing bombs while riding pillion on a motorcycle.
“The composure and ease of Guddu Muslim makes one feel as if he is throwing flowers and not bombs,” a senior police officer told ThePrint.
According to police, Guddu is currently on the run and is thought to be hiding with Atiq’s wife, Shaista Parveen.
From Mukhtar to Atiq
Born in Prayagraj as the youngest of four brothers, Guddu Muslim has a reputation among local residents, who say nobody would dare to look into his eyes when he walked down the street. “They show you those gangsters in Bollywood movies who are short tempered and unpredictable. So people would just freeze in time when he passed through the road,” said one person on condition of anonymity.
According to police sources, while he was formerly involved in crimes including robbery and extortion, it was Guddu Muslim’s expertise in making bombs that made him sought after by gangsters. He was once associated with history-sheeter Satyendra Singh, who was killed in 1997.
Guddu’s name first surfaced during the 1997 murder of Frederick Gomes, a physical training instructor at La Martiniere College in Lucknow. He was arrested but was released on bail for want of evidence a few days later. Later, he is thought to have refined his bomb-making skills while working for Gorakhpur don Parvez Tada. He also worked for don-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari before joining Atiq, say police.
Together with Atiq and others, Guddu was one of the accused in the 2005 murder of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA Raju Pal; the case is still ongoing. According to a senior Uttar Pradesh police officer, Guddu threw hand grenades at Raju Pal the same way he would during the killing of Umesh Pal — a key witness in the Raju Pal case — this February.
In both cases, Guddu is believed to have made the bombs himself. “He can make hand grenades anywhere. For him, it’s a matter of five minutes,” said a senior police officer.
It’s thought that he carries raw material — nails, shards, gunpowder — and makes grenades en route to planned attacks while evading police checks.
Also read: Atiq & Ashraf’s shooters used ‘Turkish-made pistols, may have been hired by powerful gang’