Alleging that gangster Vikas Dubey's "safe exit" from Kanpur and the sequence of events leading to his arrest in Ujjain seemed suspicious, senior Congress leaders in Madhya Pradesh on Thursday demanded a high-level probe into it.
One of the Congress leaders said that the gangster's links with politicians and policemen should also be probed.
Dubey was arrested outside the Mahakal temple at Ujjan in Madhya Pradesh on Thursday morning, ending a six-day manhunt for the gangster accused of masterminding a deadly ambush on a police party outside his home at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh.
Taking to Twitter, former MP chief minister Kamal Nath said the gangster's safe departure from Kanpur, arrival at Ujjain and the manner of arrest gave birth to a lot of suspicion.
"Such a big criminal whom the police are searching for day and night, his safe exit from Kanpur and arrival in Ujjain and later entry into the temple and the way he shouted to get himself arrested gives birth to a lot of suspicion. It hints at some protection and it should be probed," Nath tweeted.
The previous Congress-led state government had acted tough against mafia who left Madhya Pradesh, but after the BJP returned to power, the state has become a safe haven for them, he said.
Congress's Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh demanded that Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan order a judicial probe into Dubey's arrest.
"I demand from Shivrajji a judicial probe into the arrest or surrender of Vikas Dubey. His connections with politicians and policemen should also be probed. During judicial custody, adequate security measures should be taken so that all secrets come out," Singh said in a tweet.
The senior Congress leader also slammed Chouhan for taking credit for Dubey's arrest, and said that state Home Minister Narottam Mishra should be credited for that.
Carrying a reward of Rs 5 lakh for information leading to his arrest, Dubey had been on the run since last Friday night when a police party, which had gone to arrest him from his house in Bikru village in the Chaubeypur area of Kanpur, was ambushed.
The group was caught in a hail of gunfire from rooftops, which left eight policemen, including a deputy superintendent, dead.