Shaista is accused of masterminding the Umesh Pal murder case. Soon after the murder of Umesh Pal, Atiq's wife Shaista came in front of the media and was claiming the innocence of her sons and husband.
Incidentally, only moments before the incident, when the convoy had stopped for a loo break, Atiq Ahmed had confidently stated that he was not scared when questioned about his Vikas Dubey-style 'encounter' jokes and memes circulating on the internet.
Given that gangster Vikas Dubey was killed in a police encounter after he tried to escape police custody, social media users claimed that the deceased has been waiting in anticipation of Atiq Ahmed in heaven.
In April 2019, the Supreme Court directed the transfer of Atiq Ahmed to a high-security jail in Gujarat on charges of kidnapping and assaulting a businessman while in jail.