After breaking up the empire of mafia don Atiq Ahmed, UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath had announced on Tuesday that the underworld in the state had been permanently impaired and was unable to take the law in its own hands.

“Earlier, the state suffered from an identity crisis. However today, criminals and mafias are in a crisis. Now gangsters and mafia cannot threaten businessmen over the phone. Uttar Pradesh today promises a better law and order situation,” Yogi said during a signing ceremony which would lead to the establishment of a textile park in Lucknow.

Though he did not personally confirm it, it appears the Yogi administration has a bigger plan of breaking the back of 61 mafia gangs, to pave the way for the rapid development of the state.

A report on the OpIndia website points out that law enforcement authorities have compiled a list of 61 underworld gangsters, whose financial backbone will be broken after their properties worth Rs. 500 crores are attached.

The report cited Prashant Kumar, Special DG for Law and Order, as saying that a list of 61 offenders has been compiled ahead of a crackdown on cattle smuggling, illegal sand mining, illegal liquor trade, and other organised crimes.

Some of the key mafia operatives are:

·       Sudhakar Singh

Singh hails from Sultanpur and is engaged in alcohol smuggling. He is currently on the run, and police have offered a Rs. 1 lakh award for his capture.

·       Udham Singh

Belonging to Meerut, Udham Singh is among the top 25 criminals listed by the state. His gang members have been engaged in murders, dacoity, looting and extortion in western UP. He is currently being held in Unnao jail.

·       Yogesh Bhadaura

Also, from Meerut’s Bhadaura village, Bhadaura is Udham Singh’s main rival, running Gang D75. His crimes include murder, abduction, and robbery. He is currently lodged in Siddharth Nagar Jail.

·       Badan Singh Baddo

Also, from western UP, with a Rs. 2.5 lakh award on his head, Baddo has been absconding since 2019. His name appears in 40 cases related to murder, extortion and dacoity.

·       Ajit Chowdhary Akku

A member of the Moradabad mafia, he also goes by the moniker “Wasuli Bhai”. His crimes include extortion, murder, and robbery.

·       Sunil Rathi

Running his empire in western Uttar Pradesh, Baghpat native Sunil Rathi.  During the Yogi administration, he is suspected of killing Munna Bajrangi at Baghpat prison.

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