The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the child welfare committee (CWC) to take a decision within a week on the release of two minor sons of gangster-turned-former Lok Sabha MP Atiq Ahmad, who was killed in Prayagraj on April 15, from a child welfare home in Uttar Pradesh.
A bench of Justices S R Bhat and Aravind Kumar directed the authority to decide on the release of the sons of the slain gangster, after Advocate Nizam Pasha, appearing for Ahmad’s sister Shahin Ahmad, said one of the boys is going to become an adult soon and so he cannot be kept in the welfare home.
He also said they can be permitted to stay with their relative.
The bench noted the submissions and sought a report from the CWC in a week. It said Shahin Ahmad’s plea, meanwhile, will be kept pending.
The apex court was hearing Shahin Ahmad petition seeking custody of the children aged 15 and 17.
During the hearing, the court considered a report on the children and said it broadly indicated that the minors do not wish to reside in the child care institution.
“The welfare committee is directed to consider the matter afresh in light of this and pass a reasoned order in a week,” the bench said, and posted the matter for hearing next week.
Atiq Ahmad (60) and his brother Ashraf were shot dead at point-blank range by three men posing as journalists while police personnel were escorting them to a medical college for examination on April 15. The entire shooting was captured live on national television.
