PRAYAGRAJ: For over 44 years, the Chakia office of Atiq Ahmad, whether he had been in jail, assembly, parliament, roaming scot-free or absconding, has always been an epicentre of activities.
Known as ‘Sansad Ji Ka Darbar’, different kinds of people used to visit the place. Like a don, Atiq used to interact with people and handled all activities while holding darbar.
Locals of Chakia and adjoining areas in Khuldabad still have fresh memories as to how the don ruled the city and unleashed a reign of terror from his posh office.

The office used to turn into a “war room” when Atiq or any of his close associates had to contest the polls.
The terror of Atiq has always loomed large as locals never took the risk of commuting on the streets located around the building.
Moreover, locals avoided taking the route whenever Atiq’s cavalcade of fancy vehicles like Land Cruiser used to take off, or had to arrive at his Chakia office.

While a portion of the lavish Chakia office was razed to ground by development agencies in 2007 (on charges of constructing the building without sanctioned map), the activities of the gang continued in the portions of the building which escaped demolition.
A senior police official, preferring anonymity, told TOI, “The key associates, who have been arrested by police after the sensational killing of lawyer Umesh Pal and two of his gunners, revealed about the old building structure of slain gangster Atiq Ahmed as the gang used to hide its weaponry, cash and documents.

“The Atiq’s office building has always been the key centre of gang activities,” said a local, adding “additional rush was being noticed when Atiq or his close associate contested the polls”.
“The Chakia office had always been the main operational area. Whenever any person used to raise a horn outside the building while commuting on Chakia road, he was picked up by his henchmen.”

There were several FIRs lodged with different police stations wherein victims of extortion, and kidnapping narrated their horrifying experiences claiming that Atiq and his henchmen used to torture their opponents inside the building.
Slain lawyer Umesh Pal too had mentioned in the 2007 FIR that he was taken to the same building for torture.
Atiq’s ancestral house was also razed in September 2020 on the charges of being constructed without a sanctioned map.
Moreover, police had also made several seizures of weapons from the same building. Apart from seizing two foreign made rifles in 2020 from the same building, teams of Prayagraj police had in March also seized the huge cache of arms and around Rs 70 lakh cash from the same building after the Dhoomanganj shootout.
Atiq was also known for holding darbar (meeting with people, officials and others) at his ancestral house, and office building.