LUCKNOW, May 31 -- : Long projected as one of Uttar Pradesh's safest urban centres, the state capital finds itself facing uncomfortable questions about law and order as one sensational crime followed another through May, triggering public concern and exposing apparent gaps in crime prevention and investigation.

Sample this: The city witnessed a daylight execution-style shooting of a property dealer and a Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) leader was murdered outside a club. There was an alleged gangrape of a Delhi University studentand the accused initially evaded arrest. A woman was hacked to death in a public lane by her husband. A dhaba owner was shot dead for filming a roadside brawl.

The most prominent crimes were the murders of p...