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NEW DELHI: The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday told Supreme Court that it had opposed the bail plea of Ashish Mishra, son of Union minister Ajay Mishra, in connection with the Lakhimpur Kheri violence that left eight people, including four farmers, dead.
The UP government said that the submission of the petition that state did not effectively oppose the bail application of Ashish Mishra is “completely untrue.”
Uttar Pradesh police also informed the Supreme Court that the state had taken all efforts to protect the witnesses and families of victims of Lakhimpur Kheri incident.
“All witnesses are also regularly contacted by the police for appraisal of their security conditions,” it said.
Earlier this month, the apex court had sought responses of the Uttar Pradesh government and Ashish Mishra on a plea challenging the grant of bail to him by the Allahabad high court.
A single-judge bench of the high court, on February 10, had granted bail to Mishra who had spent four months in custody.
Three family members of farmers who were killed in the violence have sought a stay, saying the verdict was “unsustainable in the eyes of law as there has been no meaningful and effective assistance by the state to the court in the matter”.
On October 3 last year, eight people were killed in Lakhimpur Kheri during violence that erupted when farmers were protesting against Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit to the area.
Four farmers were mowed down by an SUV following which the driver and two BJP workers were allegedly lynched by angry farmers.
A journalist also died in the violence that triggered outrage among opposition parties and farmer groups agitating over the Centre’s now-repealed agri laws.
The plea for cancellation of Mishra’s bail said: “The lack of any discussion in the high court’s order as regards the settled principles for grant of bail is on account of lack of any substantive submissions to this effect by the state as the accused wields substantial influence over the state government as his father is a union minister from the same political party that rules the state.
“The impugned order is unsustainable in eyes of law as there has been no meaningful and effective assistance by the State to the court in the matter contrary to the object of the first Proviso to Section 439 of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, which provides that in grave offences notice of bail application should ordinarily be given to the public prosecutor.”
The plea said the high court did not consider the “overwhelming evidence” against the accused, position and status of the accused concerning the victim and witnesses, and the likelihood of him fleeing from justice and repeating the offence while granting the bail.
The Special Investigation Team probing the Lakhimpur Kheri violence incident has said that there was a planned conspiracy to murder protesting farmers.
(With agency inputs)
The UP government said that the submission of the petition that state did not effectively oppose the bail application of Ashish Mishra is “completely untrue.”
Uttar Pradesh police also informed the Supreme Court that the state had taken all efforts to protect the witnesses and families of victims of Lakhimpur Kheri incident.
“All witnesses are also regularly contacted by the police for appraisal of their security conditions,” it said.
Earlier this month, the apex court had sought responses of the Uttar Pradesh government and Ashish Mishra on a plea challenging the grant of bail to him by the Allahabad high court.
A single-judge bench of the high court, on February 10, had granted bail to Mishra who had spent four months in custody.
Three family members of farmers who were killed in the violence have sought a stay, saying the verdict was “unsustainable in the eyes of law as there has been no meaningful and effective assistance by the state to the court in the matter”.
On October 3 last year, eight people were killed in Lakhimpur Kheri during violence that erupted when farmers were protesting against Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit to the area.
Four farmers were mowed down by an SUV following which the driver and two BJP workers were allegedly lynched by angry farmers.
A journalist also died in the violence that triggered outrage among opposition parties and farmer groups agitating over the Centre’s now-repealed agri laws.
The plea for cancellation of Mishra’s bail said: “The lack of any discussion in the high court’s order as regards the settled principles for grant of bail is on account of lack of any substantive submissions to this effect by the state as the accused wields substantial influence over the state government as his father is a union minister from the same political party that rules the state.
“The impugned order is unsustainable in eyes of law as there has been no meaningful and effective assistance by the State to the court in the matter contrary to the object of the first Proviso to Section 439 of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, which provides that in grave offences notice of bail application should ordinarily be given to the public prosecutor.”
The plea said the high court did not consider the “overwhelming evidence” against the accused, position and status of the accused concerning the victim and witnesses, and the likelihood of him fleeing from justice and repeating the offence while granting the bail.
The Special Investigation Team probing the Lakhimpur Kheri violence incident has said that there was a planned conspiracy to murder protesting farmers.
(With agency inputs)
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