Pinnacle Court stays Allahabad HC bail order for accused in Bulandshahr cop lynching case

A bench of Justices S K Kaul and M M Sundresh asked accused Yogeshraj to surrender within a week.

Yogesh Raj, a convener of the Syana Bajrang Dal the alleged conspirator for instigating violence, along with several others, were granted bail by the Allahabad High Court in December 2021.

Police officer Subodh Kumar Singh was first among two people who were killed in the violence in December 2018.

A local youth, Sumit Kumar the second person was also killed in mob violence near Siyana village, Bulandshahr district during protests against alleged cow slaughter.

The Supreme Court observed that it was a serious matter, as it involved the lynching of a police officer on the pretext of cow slaughter. “Prima facie, it is a case of people taking the law into their own hand,” a bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and MM Sundresh said.

The court emphasised that everyone who is a part of such an unlawful assembly must be taken to task and face prosecution under appropriate charges of Section 34 (acts done by several persons with common intention) or Section 149 (act committed by any member of an unlawful assembly) of the Indian Penal Code.

During the hearing, the bench also pulled up the Uttar Pradesh government for not challenging the bail granted to Yogeshraj but acting only after the police inspector’s widow moved the top court.

Appearing for the petitioner, senior advocate Sanjay Hegde said the accused after being released on bail, had contested elections and had been booked for allegedly threatening to kill someone who did not vote for him. He also pointed out that charges were yet to be framed in the case.

Raj’s lawyer Pashupati Nath Razdan claimed that his client was only protesting against cow slaughter and that there was no specific allegation pertaining to lynching against him.

Finally, the bench said the matter is quite a danger where under the pretext of the cow slaughter, a police officer has been lynched. Prima facie, it is a case of people taking law into their own hands. We are of the view that Yogeshraj should be asked to surrender within a period of seven days from today and thus to that extent, the impugned orders granting him bail have stayed”.