Have filed plea for transfer: Accused tells court in Ikhlaq lynching case

Counsel for the accused, Dinesh Kumar, told the court that a transfer application had been moved before district judge of Gautam Budh Nagar under “compelling grounds”

The wife of Mohammad Ikhlaq appeared before a fast-track court (FTC) in Greater Noida on Thursday to record her statement, but the proceedings in the 2015 lynching case were adjourned till January 23 after the defence informed the court that transfer and revision applications had been filed before judicial authorities.

In its December 23 order, the FTC had termed the lynching a “serious crime against society” and held that no grounds existed to justify withdrawal of prosecution. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

As the hearing began in the court of additional district judge Saurabh Dwivedi, counsel for the accused, Dinesh Kumar, told the court that a transfer application had been moved before district judge of Gautam Budh Nagar under “compelling grounds”. He also informed the court that a revision application had been filed before the Allahabad High Court against the FTC’s December 23 order, in which it had rejected the Uttar Pradesh government’s plea to withdraw the case.

In its December 23 order, the FTC had termed the lynching a “serious crime against society” and held that no grounds existed to justify withdrawal of prosecution.

Kumar pointed to delays in recording witness statements over the last four years. “Despite all the delay, non-bailable warrants, and without listening to our plea, the court directed the case for day-to-day trial. Is this the only case left for day-to-day trial? There are many other important cases related to POCSO or crimes against women,” he said.

Kumar alleged that the case was being pursued with political motives. “This case is not being handled as a criminal matter, but as a political vendetta,” he argued, urging the court not to proceed with the trial until the transfer application was decided by the district judge.

Opposing the defence’s submissions, advocate Andleeb Naqvi, appearing for Ikhlaq’s family, said past delays could not be used to justify further postponement. “The defence elaborates on the number of days, but all this is a matter of the past. We can’t indulge in the argument that if you delayed the proceedings earlier, now I have a right to delay,” he said.

Naqvi further submitted that, politically, it appeared the public prosecutor and the defence counsel were acting together behind the scenes, which, he said, had a direct bearing on the victim’s family. “When you say there is some politics behind it, I don’t know, but it seems that the state is acting as if it is counsel for the accused.”

He added, “I am the deceased. I am the victim. I have to defend myself now. I am fighting against the system, and I have only hope from the court.”

Reacting to Kumar’s specific targeting of the media person’s presence in the courtroom, Naqvi objected: “We have to speak legally here. It’s an open court, unless and until something very sensitive is to be recorded and the court orders an in-camera trial. It is an open court, and the press and everyone have free access to it,” he argued.

Ikhlaq’s wife, Ikraman, was present in court to record her statement. However, following the adjournment, she and her son left after marking her presence before the court.

While adjourning the matter, judge Dwivedi referred to a Supreme Court judgment in P K Ghosh, IAS vs J G Rajput, as well as an Allahabad High Court ruling that cited Supreme Court observations on transfer petitions. Quoting the judgments, the court noted that when a party apprehends that it may not receive justice from a particular presiding officer, and the officer is aware that a transfer application has been moved, the officer should not proceed with the case and must wait for orders on the transfer plea.

“In view of this position, the proceedings in the concerned case are adjourned till January 23,” Dwivedi said.

Ikhlaq, 55, was lynched by a mob in Bisada village on September 28, 2015, following rumours that his family had stored beef at home. His son, Danish, was injured while trying to save his father. The attack triggered nationwide outrage over rising intolerance, with writers, filmmakers, and scientists returning state awards in protest.