Virendra Pratap Shahi

Virendra Pratap Shahi (15 August 1947 – 31 March 1997) was an Indian gangster turned politician from Uttar Pradesh.^[1] He served as the Member of the Legislative Assembly for the Lakshmipur Assembly constituency of Uttar Pradesh.

Virendra Pratap Shahi
Member of Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly
In office June 1981 – November 1989
Preceded by	Abdul Rauf Lari
Succeeded by	Amarmani Tripathi
Constituency	Lakshmipur
Personal details
Born	(1947-08-15)15 August 1947 Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
Died	31 March 1997(1997-03-31) (aged 49) Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
Manner of death	Assassination by gunshot
Political party	Independent
Other political affiliations	Rashtriya Sanjay Manch Janata Dal Samajwadi Party
Spouse	Girjesh Shahi (m.1978)
Children	2 son's (Deceased) 2 daughter's
Occupation	Gangster, Politician
Known for	Involvement in the gang war with Hari Shankar Tiwari, Served as a Member of 8th Vidhan Sabha and 9th Vidhan Sabha of Uttar Pradesh

Career

He was elected MLA From June 1981 to March 1985 and again from March 1985 to November 1989. He was a notorious gangster in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, known for his involvement in the gang war between him and Hari Shankar Tiwari, another gangster-turned-politician. The two warlords were involved in approximately 50 murders, and their gang war became a folklore in the Purvanchal region, earning it the sobriquet of Chicago of the East and Slice of Sicily. He was shot dead in 1997 by a gangster Shri Prakash Shukla.^[2][3][4]

He was known for his manipulative skills and his ability to win government contracts and influence people. In 1981, he contested the assembly (by-poll) elected from the Lakshmipur assembly constituency of Maharajganj district as an Independent candidate and won the election against Amarmani Tripathi, a close aide of Hari Shankar Tiwari.^[5]

The gang war between Shahi and Tiwari originated before the Emergency period. Tiwari was involved in student politics, while Shahi maintained close ties with Ram Kinkar Singh, a former MLA of Basti. He was living in Basti.^[3]

Death

On 31 March 1997, Shahi was shot and killed in Lucknow by Shri Prakash Shukla, a rising gangster who was seeking to establish his dominance over the underworld. After his death, Shahi's aides and supporters continued the battle, which led more killings and violence.^[3]

Virendra Pratap Shahi had over 63 pending criminal charges, including several for murder. Initially, he was a member of the Rashtriya Sanjay Manch before later joining the Janata Dal.^[6]