Death of Uttar Pradesh’s gangster ‘godfather’ sparks concerns about public safety

New Delhi, India(CNN) The brazen assassination of a former Indian lawmaker and his brother in front of live television cameras while under police custody has sparked renewed anger over the blurred lines between politics and crime in the country’s most populous state.

With more than 240 million people, Uttar Pradesh’s population is larger than most countries, yet the state has long been one of India’s poorest, held back by a reputation for corruption and organized crime.

But what took place on Saturday was especially shocking and has transfixed much of India.

Atiq Ahmed, a former lawmaker and convicted criminal, was gunned down alongside his brother Ashraf at point blank range by at least one gunman who posed as a journalist in an incident that was broadcast live.

A former Samajwadi Party member of India’s parliament, Atiq was convicted of kidnapping and sentenced to life in prison last month following a long dual career as both a politician and a mainstay of Uttar Pradesh’s criminal underworld.

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