New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Uttar Pradesh Police to conduct an inquiry and submit a report on the allegations of accused Ashish Mishra, the son of former Union minister Ajay Mishra, influencing witnesses in the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence case.
A bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice N Kotiswar Singh directed the Superintendent of Police, Lakhimpur Kheri to conduct a fact-finding inquiry and submit the report before the court within four weeks.
Apex court was hearing a plea filed by complainants seeking cancellation of bail
The bench was hearing a plea filed by complainants seeking cancellation of bail granted to accused Ashish Mishra, claiming he was trying to influence the witnesses in the case and violating bail conditions.
The counsel representing Ashish Mishra denied the allegations levelled against him and said that every time the matter is listed before the court, such allegations are being levelled for the cancellation of his bail and said that the application was publicity-oriented.
The bench the counsels representing the complainants and Ashish Mishra to submit their material to the Uttar Pradesh standing counsel for handing it over to the superintendent of Police, Lakhimpur Kheri.
Apex Court granted Ashish Mishra regular bail in the case last year
The apex court had granted Ashish Mishra interim bail in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case on January 25 last year. It, while granting him interim bail, had imposed certain conditions on him, including to not stay either in Uttar Pradesh or in National Capital Region (NCR) during the period and not to enter Uttar Pradesh except for attending the trial. The apex court later on July 22 last year granted him regular bail and permitted him to stay either in Delhi or Lucknow. It allowed him to visit Lakhimpur Kheri for trial.
8 persons, including 4 farmers, lost their lives in Lakhimpur Khiri violence in 2021
Four farmers were killed in Lakhimpur Kheri district on October 3, 2021 when a car allegedly carrying workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) mowed them down near Tikonia village during a protest against central government’s now-repealed farm laws. It has been alleged that Ashish Mishra was sitting in one of the cars. In the subsequent violence, two BJP workers and a driver lost their lives and a journalist was the eighth victim.
