How ex-UP minister Amarmani Tripathi, wife plotted the murder of poet Madhumita Shukla

Former Uttar Pradesh minister Amarmani Tripathi and his wife Madhumani, who have been serving life sentences in connection with the 2003 murder case of poet Madhumita Shukla, are set to walk free after the Supreme Court today (25 August) refused to stay the couple’s release from Gorakhpur jail. As per Indian Express, a bench of Justices Aniuddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi also issued notices to the UP government and the convicted couple, seeking their response within eight weeks on a plea filed by the slain poet’s sister Nidhi Shukla. This comes a day after the UP prisons administration department directed for the “premature” release of the ex-minister and his wife, citing the state’s 2018 policy on remission and a Supreme Court order that allows remission for lifers over 60 years of age provided they have been imprisoned for 16 years, as per Times of India (TOI). What was the case and what did the investigation find? What have been the reactions to Amarmani Tripathi’s release order? Let’s take a closer look. Madhumita Shukla murder case The poet was in her mid-20s when she was shot dead by two assailants at her residence in Lucknow on 8 May 2003. Gangster-turned-politician Amarmani Tripathi was a minister in the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) government at the time. He was arrested in September 2003 in the murder case of the poet with whom he allegedly had a relationship, reported PTI. He was also expelled from the party. Amarmani’s wife was later arrested as the main accused for plotting the killing, as per TOI.

STORY | Life convicts Amarmani Tripathi, wife set to be released after 16 years in UP jail

READ: https://t.co/VMd1AbqgnP

(File Photo) pic.twitter.com/lkkX4fLsRy

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 25, 2023

Earlier, Mayawati had ordered a probe by the police’s Criminal Investigation Department. However, the case was transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following an appeal by the slain poet’s mother. “Yes, she (Mayawati) rang up. My mother said, ‘If you put the CBI on the case, the truth will come out. She said, ‘OK. I will think about it’,” Madhumita’s sister previously told NDTV. As the Allahabad High Court released Amarmani on bail seven months after his arrest in September 2003, the slain poet’s family went public with their allegations, the news channel reported. Madhumita’s sister Nidhi claimed that the poet was close to the politician and accused him of having getting her murdered, as per Indian Express. What did the probe reveal? Later, on the plea of Madhumita’s family, the Supreme Court transferred the trial from Lucknow to Dehradun. According to NDTV, the CBI found through a DNA test that the father of Madhumita’s unborn child was Amarmani Tripathi. The poet was seven months pregnant when she was shot dead, reported News18. In 2007, a CBI court in Uttarakhand convicted Amarmani, Madhumani and two others – the ex-minister’s nephew Rohit Chaturvedi and Santosh Kumar Rai – for hatching a conspiracy and killing Madhumita. All four accused were sentenced to life imprisonment. In July 2012, the Uttarakhand High Court upheld the life term of the convicts. Speaking to NDTV in October 2007, Madhumita’s sister alleged “never-ending” threats against the family, which she said continued even after the case was shifted out of Uttar Pradesh. Amarmani Tripathi, who was a four-time MLA then, wielded a lot of influence and had links to several political parties. As per Hindustan Times (HT), he contested the 2007 UP assembly election from jail on a Samajwadi Party (SP) ticket. ALSO READ: Love Kills: Madhumita Shukla Hatyakand director Deepak Chaturvedi: 'Some parts of the show are uncomfortable' Reactions on the UP government’s release order The UP prisons authority’s release order cited the convicts’ old age – Amarmani (66) and Madhumani is 61, “good behaviour” and “maintenance of peace” inside the jail, reported HT.  The couple is currently admitted to Gorakhpur’s BRD Medical College, where, as per Indian Express, they have spent most of their sentence for “treatment” of various ailments. Speaking to news agency PTI, Nidhi, who has been at the forefront of the fight for justice for her sister, said, “I have been telling everyone that this is going to happen. I have procured the documents through an RTI which clearly states that 62 per cent of the jail term that the two are said to have served had been spent out of jail. I submitted documents to all responsible persons telling them that between 2012 and 2023 he was not in jail. The government documents, which I have got through the state information commission, after a long fight, bear this out”. She has also expressed concern about her family’s safety.

VIDEO | "I have been running from pillar to post, but didn't get justice till today. Such useless are the governments that they couldn't send Amarmani Tripathi to prison despite the court giving him life imprisonment," says Nidhi Shukla, sister of late poet Madhumita Shukla, on… pic.twitter.com/r4JIb5xfQZ

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 25, 2023

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The issue also generated reactions from political parties. The SP has hit out at the BJP-led UP government over the release order. “Under what rules are Amarmani Tripathi and his wife being released? It seems BJP’s Yogi-Modi model has become stale, so they need Amarmani. They may even end up needing Mukhtar Ansari. In fact, I am sure, whichever criminal in jail BJP needs for the 2024 election, all will be bailed out,” SP spokesperson Manoj Yadav said, as per NDTV. According to News18, Congress leader Anshu Awasthi said, “Releasing Amarmani is not fair at all. How can the government leave a person of criminal background, found guilty in the CBI investigation?" The BJP has defended the decision.

#WATCH | UP Prisons minister Dharamveer Prajapati on the release of former minister Amarmani Tripathi and his wife in poetess Madhumita murder case

"The release of prisoners from jail is based on prison policies and on the conduct of the prison inmates. Only after directions… pic.twitter.com/XqaTZf8sL2

— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) August 25, 2023

UP prisons minister Dharamveer Prajapati told ANI, “The release of prisoners from jail is based on prison policies and on the conduct of the prison inmates. Only after directions from the Governor and CM, the orders for the release of a prisoner are given.” With inputs from agencies