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Azam Khan walks out of jail after 11 months, ED takes him into custody within minutes
Azam Khan alleges he is being punished for being a Muslim; lawyers to challenge action in SC; his son Abdullah walks free on bail
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The prison gates opened on Saturday evening after nearly 11 months behind bars for veteran Samajwadi Party leader and former Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Azam Khan, but the freedom proved fleeting.
Within minutes of securing his release from Rampur district jail along with his son Abdullah Azam in the dual-PAN-card case, Azam Khan was questioned by an Enforcement Directorate (ED) team from Lucknow and taken into custody in connection with a separate money-laundering investigation involving the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust and Mohammad Ali Jauhar University. Abdullah was allowed to walk free.
As ED officials took him away, Azam Khan briefly spoke to reporters outside the jail, alleging that he was being punished for being a Muslim.
“What’s left there to say... It’s the punishment for being a Muslim. The mistake was, a Muslim built the university, this is the crime; made schools for children, this is the crime,” he said when asked to comment on the development.
The dramatic turn began even before the father and son could emerge from the jail. An ED team entered the prison around 15 minutes before their scheduled release at approximately 7.10 pm. Outside, 24 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were deployed. The ED officials questioned Azam and then took him away, while several hundred supporters who had gathered to welcome the two leaders watched the sudden reversal.
A senior ED official in Lucknow confirmed the action, saying, “Yes, we have apprehended Azam Khan. After following the arrest procedures, we will formally arrest him and produce him before the Ghaziabad PMLA court on Sunday morning.”
The agency’s action came just two days after the Allahabad high court, on October 29, granted bail to Azam and Abdullah and suspended their sentences in the dual-PAN-card case. The court declined to stay their convictions, but its order paved the way for their release after the necessary legal formalities were completed.
Azam Khan’s legal team termed the ED action unconstitutional and announced plans to approach the Supreme Court. Senior advocate and Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal, who represents Azam, is expected to take up the matter in the apex court against the agency’s action.
The ED action relates to a separate money-laundering investigation involving the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust and Mohammad Ali Jauhar University. The agency has been probing alleged financial irregularities linked to the trust and the university and had earlier questioned Azam in jail in connection with the case. It had also attached properties associated with the university as part of its investigation.
With the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections due in 2027, Azam’s release after nearly 11 months in jail had considerable political significance. On October 22, just nine days before his release, SP president Akhilesh Yadav had visited Rampur jail to meet him.
For Azam, Saturday’s episode marked the end of his third spell in jail since 2020, but not an immediate return to freedom. He was first sent to jail on February 26, 2020, and remained there until May 20, 2022, when he was released after securing interim bail from the Supreme Court. He was jailed again on October 18, 2023, and released on September 23, 2025. His third stint began on November 17, 2025, and ended with the release order on October 31, 2026. The ED action followed almost immediately.
The release had drawn several hundred SP supporters to the jail in anticipation of welcoming the father and son. Their celebrations, however, were short-lived. While Abdullah left the prison premises, Azam was taken away by the ED team, with the agency confirming that it would complete his formal arrest and produce him before the special PMLA court in Ghaziabad on Sunday.
Reacting to ED taking Azam Khan into custody, SP national spokesperson Abbas Haider said, “The Enforcement Directorate and other central agencies appear to have become instruments of political intimidation rather than independent investigative institutions. Their actions against senior Samajwadi Party leader Mohd. Azam Khan Sahib reflect a disturbing pattern of using state and central machinery to target political opponents.”
“Consider the ED’s own figures: out of 8,851 ECIRs registered under PMLA since its inception, trials have been completed in just 60 cases — a mere 0.68%. This raises serious questions about the pace and effectiveness of investigations when people are arrested and subjected to prolonged custody while trials remain pending,” he said.
The BJP government, unable to keep Azam Khan Sahib behind bars through its existing cases, appears determined to implicate him in fresh cases through central agencies. This is nothing short of political vendetta and a grave assault on constitutional rights. The ED must investigate financial crimes, not become a tool for intimidating the Opposition and settling political scores,” he added.
