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HC hearing in MP Afzal Ansari’s plea to continue today
If the conviction is confirmed, then Afzal will lose his parliament membership , as the sentence is of more than two years
The Allahabad High Court will continue to hear on Thursday a criminal appeal filed by Ghazipur MP Afzal Ansari challenging his conviction and four-year sentence in a Gangsters’ Act case given by a trial court of Ghazipur. This case was imposed on Afzal following the killing of then BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai in 2005.
Along with this appeal, the court is also hearing a connected UP govt’s appeal seeking the enhancement of Afzal’s sentence in the same case and a criminal revision filed by Piyush Kumar Rai, the son of Krishnanand Rai, also seeking an enhancement of the sentence.
This appeal assumes significance because if the conviction of Afzal is confirmed, he will lose his parliament membership , as the sentence is of more than two years. Afzal won the Ghazipur seat on a Samajwadi Party ticket in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Justice Sanjay Kumar Singh adjourned the hearing on Wednesday after hearing both sides.
An MP-MLA court of Ghazipur had on April 29, 2023, convicted Afzal and sentenced him to four years jail and imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh in the Gangsters’ Act case. His younger brother Mukhtar Ansari too was sentenced to 10 years in jail in the case.
Following this, Afzal was disqualified as an MP. Thereafter, he filed the present criminal appeal before the high court.
On July 24, 2023, the high court had granted bail to the five-time MLA and two-time MP but declined to stay his conviction in the case. As a result, though Afzal was released from jail, his parliament membership was not restored. Further, he also became disqualified to contest future polls as the sentence awarded was more than two years.
However, later the Supreme Court stayed his conviction, as a result, his membership was restored, and he also became eligible to contest the Lok Sabha election. However, the apex court directed the HC to expedite the hearing and decide the case by June 30.
