The Uttar Pradesh government on Monday shifted gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed to a high-security jail in Bareilly after a Lucknow-based businessman alleged that he was kidnapped and brought to the prison in Deoria district, where Ahmed was lodged, to sign away property worth Rs 40 crore, PTI reported. Atiq is a former Samajwadi Party parliamentarian.

“Approval has been given for shifting undertrial Atiq Ahmed, who is currently lodged in Deoria district jail, to Bareilly district jail on administrative grounds,” said an order issued by state the prisons department.

The state government initiated disciplinary proceedings against Deoria Jail Superintendent Dilip Kumar Pandey and jailer Mukesh Kumar Katiyar, and suspended deputy jailer Dev Nath Yadav, head warder Munna Pandey and warder Rakesh Kumar Sharma.

Krishna Nagar Circle Officer Lal Pratap Singh said that Ahmed and his supporters on December 26 forced Mohit Jaiswal to drive from Lucknow to Deoria in his own vehicle. Jaiswal was assaulted inside the jail and forced to sign papers handing over property worth Rs 40 crore before he was let off. The police registered a case against Ahmed, his son Umar, their accomplices, and several unidentified persons on several charges, including attempt to murder.

State Principal Secretary (Home) Arvind Kumar on Sunday said the police have arrested two of the accused.

Katiyar said the meeting between Ahmed and Jaiswal had taken place as per jail rules. “I have no information on whether he was abducted and forced to come here or assaulted,” the jailer added. “He didn’t tell anyone about it while leaving.”

Deoria District Magistrate Amit Kishore said authorities have taken cognisance of the closed-circuit television camera footage from the jail. “It seems that the CCTV recording has been tampered with... some parts of the footage are missing,” he said, adding that the Gorakhpur deputy inspector general (prisons) will conduct a probe into the lapse.

Ahmed has been in jail since February 2017 after being booked for allegedly assaulting faculty members of an agriculture institute in Allahabad.