Meerut: Days after mafia don Munna Bajrangi was gunned down in Baghpat jail, former BSP MLA Lokesh Dikshit, who had lodged an extortion case against Bajrangi, was expelled from the party. Bajrangi was supposed to appear in the case in Baghpat court on July 9.Confirming the development, Satyapal Peplaa, BSP’s zone coordinator for Meeurt-Saharanpur, claimed it was a “disciplinary action” after Dikshit was found to be involved in “anti-party activities”. He refrained from elaborating on the misconduct of Dikshit which attracted the disciplinary action, claiming that the decision was taken by party supremo Mayawati.When TOI spoke with Lokesh Dikshit, who represented Baraut assembly seat in 2012, he said, “There is only one reason of my expulsion. Extortion culture is still prevailing in the party. I decided not to contribute any further and hence I was shown the door. I will consult my loyalists and supporters and decide on further course of action.”Asked about Bajrangi’s killing, Dikshit claimed he had nothing to do with it. “He was summoned here in the routine procedure of trial in the case. Earlier, a man named Sultan was arrested who had disclosed names of the perpetrators,” he said.Based on a complaint of Dikshit in September last year, an FIR was filed at Baghpat’s Baraut police station where he claimed to have received an extortion call from an unknown caller who identified himself as don Munna Bajrangi. Based on the inputs and surveillance, a man named Sultan was arrested from Lucknow.Claiming it to be a “premeditated conspiracy to eliminate” Bajrangi, his lawyer Vikas Srivastava claimed that the ailing don, who was appearing in all others cases through video-conferencing, was ordered to depose in Baghpat court in person in a minor case. “He is not even directly involved in the case. At the behest of taking voice sample, prosecution secured an order of personal appearance. This was all done under a premeditated conspiracy,” Srivastava said.Bajrangi was shot dead inside Baghpat jail on July 9, hours before his appearance in court. According to police, another gangster, Sunil Rathi, pumped several bullets into Bajrangi’s chest and head leading to his death on the spot. The murder weapon – a foreign-made .32 mm pistol, along with live cartridges – was later recovered from a sewage line within jail where Rathi had allegedly dumped it.With no existing conflict of interest between the two gangsters, the motive of the sensational crime is still unclear. The authorities have been tight-lipped on the issue while a probe has been ordered.

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