'Justice served....today is Holi for us': Wife of BJP leader killed by Mukhtar Ansari

Alka Rai, wife of late BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai, who was killed by Mukhtar Ansari, on Friday (March 29) said that “justice has been served” with the death of the gangster-turned politician.

“What can I say? This is the blessing of the Almighty. I used to pray to him for justice and it has been served today,” she told news agency ANI. She said they never celebrated Holi following the murder of her husband. “We never celebrated Holi after the incident (the murder). I felt that today is Holi for us. It is a day of happiness for those children who were orphaned because a criminal has been removed from the Earth.” About the Opposition parties raising questions over the death of Ansari, she said, “It is a wrong thing.”

The son of the deceased, however, claimed that his father was given “poison” in the food. “Now the whole nation knows everything... Two days ago I came to meet him, but I was not allowed... We said earlier also and even today we will say the same about the allegation. On March 19, he was given poison in the dinner. We will move the judiciary, we have full faith in it...” said Umar Ansari.

Meanwhile, BSP chief Mayawati said that the serious allegations by Mukhtar Ansari’s family regarding his death in jail require a “high-level probe” so that the facts related to his death “can be revealed”.

In a post on X, the BSP chief said, “The persistent apprehensions and serious allegations made by Mukhtar Ansari's family regarding his death in jail require a high-level investigation so that the true facts of his death can be revealed.”

Mukhtar Ansari was convicted and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for the murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai by an MP MLA court in April last year. He was sentenced to life in prison on March 13, 2024, in a case related to the use of forged documents for obtaining an arms licence in 1990.