Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh), Apr 9 (IANS): The Prayagraj police have doubled the reward on jailed gangster Atiq Ahmad's wife Shaista Parveen, who is on the run, in connection with the Umesh Pal murder case.

The reward amount has been increased from Rs 25,000 to Rs 50,000.

The Prayagraj MP/ MLA court had rejected Shaista's anticipatory bail application last week.

Shaista has been absconding since she was named as an accused in the Umesh Pal murder.

Umesh Pal was the prime witness in 2005 BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case and he, along with two of his police gunners, was killed outside his house in Sulemsarai on February 24.

Earlier, the MP/MLA court had, on April 6, rejected the anticipatory bail application of Shaista in connection with the case, with the observation that Shaista had been named as an accused in the FIR.

Hence, taking into consideration the facts, circumstances and nature of the offence, the anticipatory bail was rejected.

A senior police officer said, "After increasing the cash reward, three special police teams have been deputed to tighten the noose around Shaista. We have already prepared a fresh dossier on Shaista as she has four criminal cases, including cheating and fraud, pending against her. We have compiled important clues about Shaista's movement and teams are working in this direction."

After the arrest of seven key associates of Atiq and subsequent recovery of cash and weapons from his old office building in city's Chakia locality, police have been successful in ascertaining the role of Shaista in the case and claim that she had attended all the meetings where the conspiracy to eliminate Umesh Pal was hatched.

Meanwhile, an objectionable poster of Atiq reportedly surfaced on social media on Saturday. The poster reads: "Raat kitni bhi kali ho/ Savera zaroor hota hai."