Apex court denies interim bail to UP Samajwadi party leader Azam Khan

The Supreme Court rejected an interim bail to SP senior political member Azam Khan, who is about to participate forthcoming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.

A bench of justices L Nageswara Rao and BR Gavai said it cannot directly entertain a writ petition for granting bail in four cases.

Senior lawyer Kapil Sibal, on behalf of SP politician, informs SC that bail plea was not being taken up for the last three-four months despite repeated requests for the hearing. He requested the court to grant Khan interim relief so that he can be active in the forthcoming uttar Pradesh assembly elections.

"Do not bring politics to the court," the court remarked during the hearing.

Top court questioned How can you file 32 petitions to seek bail?

To this, Khan responded, “I am inside prison for nothing. Where do I go my lord? I am not bringing any politics into it.” Kapil Sibal, told the court that 87 FIRs have been filed against Khan and he has got bail in 84 cases. 

Me Sibal further said that the bail plea was not being taken up for the last 3-4 months despite multiple requests for hearing.

In some of the cases filed against Khan, his wife Tanzeen Fatima, the present MLA from Rampur Sadar, and their son Abdullah are both accused. Fatima earlier got bail in December 2020, and Abdullah on January 15. Khan, however, remains in jail since February 2020.

The senior political member khan has said in his plea that the State has adopted all means available to purposefully delay the proceedings in these remaining three Bail Applications so as to ensure that the Petitioner is incarcerated during the State Assembly Elections scheduled to be held in the State of UP from February 10 to March 7 and cannot join in the election campaign for his party.

The bench answered that such a petition under Article 32 (writ jurisdiction to protect fundamental rights) may not be standable. “How can you file an Article 32 petition for bail? You go to the high court,” it said.

Sibal  strongly delivered that the FIRs are of a political agenda against his client. He added one FIR is 16-year-old and another is of criticism of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the ideological fountainhead of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. “Where do we go? We go to the high court and the court does not even get my files. It goes to a judge who does not have the case.” He added his client is in prison for nothing. “On a single day, 25 FIRs were filed.”

On This day finally The court remarked that: “Please, don’t bring all this politics to the court. How can we grant him bail in cases from here? You will have to go to the high court. Make a request before the chief justice there.”