Lakhimpur Kheri violence: Supreme Court grants bail to Ashish Mishra, son of former Union Minister Ajay Mishra
PTC News Desk: In the case pertaining to the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence that claimed eight lives, the Supreme Court granted bail to Ashish Mishra, the son of former Union minister Ajay Mishra, on July 22. However, the court also placed restrictions on Mishra's movement, limiting it to Delhi or Lucknow.
The top court granted Ashish Mishra interim bail on January 25 of last year in relation to the violent 'unfortunate horrific occurrence'. Farmers involved in the case were also granted bail by a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, who also instructed the trial court to expedite the proceedings.
"The interim order is made absolute, taking into account all the attending circumstances...Seven of the 117 witnesses have reportedly already undergone examination. We believe that the trial process need to be accelerated.
The Bench stated, "We direct the trial court to fix the schedule, prioritising the pending subject but keeping in view the other time-bound or urgent matters that are pending."
Farmers were demonstrating against the visit of Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya when the violence broke out. A sport utility vehicle ran over four farmers. Then, it is said that enraged farmers lynched a driver and two BJP employees. The violence that infuriated opposition parties and farmer groups protesting the Center's since-repealed agriculture policies also claimed the life of a journalist.
The trial was set to begin on December 6 of last year when the trial court drafted accusations against Mishra and 12 other people for alleged crimes including murder, criminal conspiracy, and other penal laws related to the farmers' deaths.
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- With inputs from agencies
