HC paves way for Mukhtar aide’s transfer from Mohali to Lucknow

Lucknow High Court dismisses petition filed by alleged aide of jailed gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari, challenging production warrant issued against him in a murder case.

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court has dismissed as withdrawn a petition filed by Harvinder Singh alias Jugnu Walia, an alleged aide of jailed gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari, challenging the production warrant issued against him by the Lucknow chief judicial magistrate (CJM) in a murder case.

The CJM court had issued the production warrant on May 8 this year permitting the Lucknow police to bring Walia from Punjab.

Walia, on whose arrest a reward of ₹1 lakh was announced, was arrested by Punjab Police in Mohali last month. He is an accused in the 2021 murder case of a Lucknow-based restaurant owner. The FIR was lodged against him at the Alambagh police station.

The CJM court had issued the production warrant on May 8 this year permitting Lucknow police to bring Walia from Punjab.

The single-judge bench of Justice Ajai Kumar Srivastava scrapped Walia’s petition on May 31.

Walia’s counsel had expressed apprehension regarding the ‘threat’ to his life while being brought to Lucknow from Punjab.

Additional advocate general (AAG) Vinod Kumar Shahi had opposed the petition.

Shahi argued that all apprehensions of the applicant were misplaced and baseless as the state government would ensure all security arrangements during the transfer.