The Uttar Pradesh Police Sunday announced a reward of Rs 2.5 lakh each for giving information about the five people, including gangster and former MP Atiq Ahmad's son Asad, allegedly involved in the killing of Umesh Pal -- the prime witness in the 2005 BSP MLA murder case.

Besides Asad, the other four accused are Gulam, Guddu and Sabir, a senior official said.

Umesh Pal, the key witness in the BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case, and his police security guard Sandeep Nishad were shot dead on February 24 outside his home in the Dhoomanganj area of Prayagraj.

Atiq Ahmed is the prime accused in the Raju Pal murder case and is currently lodged in a Gujarat jail.

A reward of Rs 2.5 lakh each for the arrest or giving information for the arrest of five persons involved in the killing of Umesh Pal in Prayagraj has been announced, the senior official said.

Based on a complaint lodged by Umesh Pal's wife Jaya Pal, a case was registered at Dhoomanganj police station against Atiq Ahmed, his brother Ashraf, wife Shaista Parveen, two sons, aides Guddu Muslim and Ghulam and nine others.

They have been booked under IPC sections 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) and provisions of the Explosive Substances Act and the Criminal Law Amendment Act.

Jaya Pal claimed that her husband was the prime witness in the Raju Pal murder case. In 2006, Atiq Ahmed and his aides abducted him and forced him to give a statement in court in their favour. Umesh Pal had registered a complaint in this regard and the case was ongoing.

On February 24, there was a hearing in the matter for which Umesh Pal, his nephew and two security personnel Sandeep Nishad and Raghvendra Singh went to court.

Umesh Pal was shot dead outside his residence. One of his gunners, who too was hit in the firing, died later at a hospital, officials said. A couple of days later, Arbaz, who allegedly drove the SUV of the assailants, was killed in an encounter with the police in Prayagraj.

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