The Ansari family from Ghazipur in Poorvanchal presents a stark contrast, with the likes of Mukhtar Ahmed Ansari, a medical practitioner-turned-freedom fighter and educationist, who was an early president of the Indian National Congress, and his grand-nephew Mohammad Hamid Ansari, a respected civil servant, scholar, and former Vice-President of India. However, the family also includes Mukhtar Ansari (62), the good doctor’s grandson, and his gangster-politician family, who have been accused of running criminal operations from inside jail for the past 18 years. Mukhtar Ansari has been incarcerated since October 2005, following his surrender to the police in a case related to a communal riot in Mau, which claimed the lives of seven individuals.