Rs 5 lakh bounty Arman held in Gaya jail, UP police seek transit remand

Uttar Pradesh Police have located Arman, a key accused in the 2023 Umesh Pal murder case and a shooter for the Atiq Ahmed gang, in Gaya Central Jail in Bihar. Arman, who carried a Rs 5 lakh reward, was arrested in a separate case in February 2023 and has been imprisoned there, evading UP police for nearly three years.

Police from Prayagraj’s Dhoomanganj station identified Arman on 30 September and filed a transit remand application in a Gaya court on 1 October. The court has not yet heard the remand plea. However, a separate petition by Arman's parents, who feared a fake encounter if he was handed over to UP police, was dismissed by the Gaya magistrate on 1 October, according to lawyer Lalit Kumar Gupta.

Arman's lawyer claimed collusion between jail authorities and UP police, alleging a conspiracy to kill Arman. He said he will file a writ petition in Patna High Court. Arman is wanted for the daylight murder of Umesh Pal and two police gunmen on 24 February 2023 in Prayagraj, where CCTV footage showed him driving the bike carrying the main shooter, Guddu Muslim.