New Delhi: The Supreme Court has asked the UP government to submit a status report on the measures taken after the brazen murder of Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf in police custody and questioned why the duo was 'paraded' and not taken to the hospital gate in an ambulance, media reports said.

Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were shot by three gunmen posing as journalists while they were taken to a medical college and hospital in Prayagraj for a regular health check-up on April 15 around 10 pm at night. The shooting occurred while several police officers and media personnel were present to interview the duo.

A Supreme Court bench comprising Justices S Ravindra Bhat and Dipankar Datta was hearing a plea filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari seeking an inquiry into 183 police encounters in Uttar Pradesh since 2017.

The court also asked the UP government about the police encounter with Ahmed's son Asad in Jhansi.

The court also asked the UP government what actions have been taken on the report of Justice BS Chauhan regarding police functioning after the Vikas Dubey encounter.

The petitioner demanded an independent inquiry under the supervision of a retired Supreme Court judge.

The UP government said a judicial commission has been formed to investigate the matter.

However, the petitioner raised questions over the role of the government in the functioning of this commission.

Following this, the apex court then asked the UP government to file a status report.

The UP government will file an affidavit to explain the circumstances in which Atiq and Ashraf were killed and the steps taken to investigate the shooting incident.