Lucknow, Dec 22 : A jailed gangster who audaciously checked into a government guest house with the connivance of policemen and was having a good time has been caught in the act. Gangster Ateeq Khan is headed back to prison while four guilty policemen have been suspended.

Charged with murders, abductions and other heinous crimes, Khan was brought from Uttar Pradesh's Siddhartnagar district jail to Kanpur Dec 17 to attend a court case.

Later, instead of going back to prison, Khan quietly moved into the railway guest house in Lucknow with the connivance of the policemen, said police officials.

There, Khan and the policemen, joined by the former's associates, every day enjoyed the "best of food and luxuries", Additional Director General of Police Brij Lal told reporters here.

The guest house belonged to the North-Eastern Railway and was located in the Charbagh locality, near the Lucknow railway station.

Someone decided to expose the farce by tipping off the authorities.

On Monday, the Special Task Force (STF) raided the guest house and nabbed the notorious gangster, his accomplices and the policemen.

An inspector and three constables have been suspended. Criminal proceedings have also been initiated against those caught at the guest house.

Asked if railway officials too were involved in the scam, Lal said: "It needs to be probed."(IANS)