Akhilesh Yadav visits Mukhtar Ansari's family, says "How can we accept this was a natural death? Even in Russia..."

Ghazipur (Uttar Pradesh) [India], April 7 : Equating the death of gangster turned politician Mukhtar Ansari with the Russia's leader of the opposition, Alexei Navalny who died in prison, Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav met the family of deceased gangster and praised "Umar Ansari's grandfather for their role in the freedom struggle of the country".
After meeting the family of Mukhtar Ansari, the Samajwadi Party Chief on Sunday said that whatever happened was "shocking" for everyone.
"Whatever happened was shocking for everyone. What's even more shocking is, that Mukhtar Ansari himself said that he was being poisoned. Did Manu and Umar Ansari's grandfather not have any role to play during the freedom struggle? The government wants to hide these things," the SP chief told reporters.
Akhilesh Yadav lauded the "contribution" of the family of Ansari and said that his family is involved in the welfare of the poor.
"Sometimes people sitting far away do not realise the image of a person. He was not how we were presented to the people... This family is still involved in the welfare of the poor. This is why thousands of people gathered here and gave a message to the family that they stand with the them in these times... How can we accept that this was a natural death?... Even in Russia, the leader of the opposition was poisoned and killed inside jail," he added.
Meanwhile, Alexey Navalny, who passed away at the age of 47 on February 16, according to the Russian prison service, had long been a persistent critic of President Vladimir Putin, exposing corruption at high levels, advocating against the ruling United Russia party, and organising major anti-government protests in recent years, CNN reported.
Mukhtar Ansari's son, Umar Ansari, said that Akhilesh Yadav came and met the family and he boosted our "confidence."
"My mother and brother were not there... My relationship with my father is different, but millions of others considered my father as their messiah. He gave courage to not just the family, but to all the followers of my father... We will fight a legal battle and have faith in our judiciary... Not just Muslims, but people of all castes and faiths still come and pay their respects at his grave," he added.
Mukhtar Ansari passed away at Banda Medical College Hospital in Uttar Pradesh after he suffered a cardiac arrest on March 28.
In April 2023, Mukhtar Ansari was convicted and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for the murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai by an MP-MLA court. He was sentenced to life in prison on March 13, 2024, in a case related to the use of forged documents for obtaining an arms licence in 1990.