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SC seeks UP police report on material seeking cancellation of Ashish Mishra bail
Ashish Mishra’s lawyers contested the allegations and produced material to show that he was at the Lok Sabha secretariat visiting a doctor on October 2
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday ordered the Uttar Pradesh police to inquire into allegations that former union minister Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish, a prime accused in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case, violated bail conditions imposed by the court in January 2023.
A bench of justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh told the police to investigate allegations levelled by the victims in the case, alleging that Mishra attended a public event in Lakhimpur on October 2 last year in violation of the bail condition that barred him from entering Lakhimpur except to attend court proceedings.
They also alleged that witnesses were being threatened to scare them from deposing against Mishra in the trial.
Mishra’s lawyers contested the allegations and accused the victims of trying to prejudice the trial by making baseless allegations.
The bench directed the UP police to investigate the claims made by both sides.
“In our view, the genuineness, veracity and reliability of such material can be gone into by the police administration who may then submit a report in support or against the allegations seeking cancellation of bail,”
The court said the two sides should hand over the material they have to the lawyer appearing for the state who will then hand it over to the Lakhimpur Kheri superintendent of police (SP).
The victims asked the court to appoint a senior officer to investigate the claims but the bench declined. “Now he is not in power. Let us trust the officer,” the bench said, and ordered the district SP to hold a fact-finding inquiry and submit a report to the court.
Ashish’s father Ajay Mishra ‘Teni’, a former minister of state in the Union ministry of home affairs, lost the 2024 Lok Sabha elections to the Samajwadi Party’s Utkarsh Verma. He had twice represented the Kheri parliamentary seat in the Lok Sabha.
Ashish Mishra is accused of mowing down four farmers at Lakhimpur on October 3, 2021, as they protested the now-scrapped farm laws. He was granted interim bail by the top court on January 25, 2023 with strict conditions imposed on his movement and an express bar against him or any person in his family or supporters exerting influence or threatening against the witnesses.
A total of eight people were killed in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence. Mishra was arrested within six days of the incident in October 2021. As per the police charge sheet, the killings were pre-planned as Mishra arrived in a Mahindra Thar SUV along with a convoy of 3-4 vehicles at the site where the farmers were protesting.. One journalist was also killed.
Infuriated by this act, protesting farmers pulled out three occupants from the car and lynched them. A separate criminal case in this regard was registered by police and is pending trial. The four farmers accused in the case were granted regular bail in January 2023.
In November last year, the victims filed an application alleging that Ashish had violated the bail conditions and should be sent back to jail. Advocate Prashant Bhushan, who appeared for the victims, sought permission to file a voice recording of a person trying to dissuade a witness from giving evidence in court.
The bench didn’t permit it. “This will lead to a parallel enquiry and how can we know whether that person (who spoke to the witness) is acting on behalf of the petitioner (Ashish Mishra) or is planted by someone. Instead, let everything be handed over to the police. It will also have some credibility,” the bench said.
Senior advocate Siddharth Dave who appeared for Mishra, accused the petitioner of spreading unfounded allegations to prejudice the trial.
“Let the trial court decide if this is a fit allegation to be gone into. Some of the witnesses have already been examined. All this is publicity-oriented. Every time this matter comes up, they make allegations that I am trying to influence witnesses. In fact, it is their witnesses who are not turning up during trial. The trial judge is at his wits’ end to secure their presence.”
Referring to an affidavit filed in response to court’s notice, Dave pointed out that on October 2, 2024 Mishra was in Delhi visiting a lab to give his blood sample for tests before visiting a doctor at the CGHS medical centre in Parliament House annexe on October 3. “It is not me in the picture,” he said referring to photographs produced by victims to suggest his presence at a Gandhi Jayanti function in Lakhimpur. “The allegation levelled against petitioner about his presence at Lakhimpur Kheri on October 2, 2024 is absolutely baseless, false, misleading, whimsical,” Dave said.
The bench observed, “Sometimes this can unwittingly prejudice trial and influence witnesses. Sending this to the trial court will not serve the purpose. It has no means to find out except to tell the police to investigate. Some documents have come from you and some by them. Let the matter go to the state.”
The top court’s order granting bail to Mishra in 2023 placed conditions pertaining to his movement in Uttar Pradesh. The order was modified subsequently allowing Mishra to stay at Lucknow and Delhi in July last year. However, the court said that he shall be entitled to go to Lakhimpur, where the trial is pending, only for the purpose of trial by arriving there a day prior to the date fixed in the district court.
A total of eight people were killed in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence. Mishra was arrested within six days of the incident in October 2021. As per the police charge sheet, the killings were pre-planned as Mishra arrived in a Mahindra Thar SUV along with a convoy of 3-4 vehicles at the site where the farmers were holding protest over the farm laws, which now stand repealed. One journalist was also killed under the wheels.
Infuriated by this act, the protesting farmers pulled out three occupants from the car and they were beaten to death. A separate criminal case in this regard was registered by police and is pending trial. The four farmers accused in the case were granted regular bail in January 2023. Prior to approaching the top court, Mishra was refused bail by the Allahabad high court in July 2022.
