VARANASI: Dreaded gangster Munna Bajrangi introduced use of AK-47s in UP’s gang war. He first used it in killing a block pramukh, Kailash Dubey, and his four accomplices at the behest of his mentor Mukhtar Ansari in 1996. He used it again when he killed BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai and six others on November 29, 2005.Born in 1967, Bajrangi dropped out after Class V, and worked as a weaver. His name first featured in a murder at the tender age of 17, when he shot dead his employer Bhulan Seth in 1984. Next year, he was named in the murder of a businessman in Varanasi. He then joined the gang of east UP mafia don Gajraj Singh.He got the nickname ‘Munna’ as he was youngest in his family and Bajrangi for being a devotee of Lord Hanuman and often being seen sporting a saffron tilak on his forehead.Bajrangi came in contact with Mukhtar Ansari through his friend Mohammed Kalam and soon became his right-hand man. Ansari used Bajrangi in countering his main rival Brijesh Singh and eliminating his men while he focused on carving out a career for himself in politics.His downfall started after 2003 when his lieutenants and sharp-shooters were eliminated one by one. While extortion had been Bajrangi’s prime business, after being jailed he entered into real estate, liquor, mining and government tenders through his close associates.However, his dream of becoming a public representative like his arch-rival Brijesh Singh and mentor Mukhtar and regain some ‘respectability’ remained unfulfilled. As per police records, the history-sheet of Bajrangi was opened with Sureri police station in Jaunpur district in 1982 and till 1985, three murder cases were lodged against him with Jaunpur and Varanasi police.He came into limelight in 1993 when he murdered a block chief in Jaunpur and fled with carbine of his gunner. Till then he had started enjoying patronage of Gajraj Singh. In 1996, Bajrangi created sensation by killing Gajraj’s political rivals — Mariyahu Kailash Dubey and BJP leader Rajkumar Singh in Rampur. A minor girl was also killed when Bajrangi sprayed bullets on the two with an AK-47 . Police caught Gajraj after the incident, but Bajrangi could not be traced.In mid ’90s, east UP witnessed a gang war between Brijesh and Mukhtar who were running their syndicates in lucrative trades, including coal. Bajrangi posed serious challenge to the monopoly of both the dons and spread his extortion trade in the region. Not only this, his menace was also felt in west UP, Delhi and Haryana. But gradually, he aligned with Ansari. In 1997, Bajrangi was booked under the Gangster Act and his gang was registered as interstate gang (IS-233).By 2004, Bajrangi associated himself with Mukhtar gang. In 2005, he sprayed BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai and his six companions with bullets in Ghazipur district . The CBI, which began probe into the Krishnanad murder case, announced cash reward of Rs 5 lakh on him while UP police announced a reward of Rs 2 lakh.By 2008, all shooters and close associates of Bajrangi were killed in encounters or gang rivalries. Police records said that after the killing of Bajrangi, only one registered member, Meraj alias Merajuddin, is left in the gang.Killing of his sharp-shooters compelled Bajrangi to hide in Mumbai, from where he was arrested in 2009. After landing in jail, he started efforts to strengthen his financial condition by entering several businesses like real estate, liquor and grab contracts in government departments in the name of his close associates.

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