Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Jan 25: Ashish Mishra, the son of Union Minister Ajay Mishra, was granted interim bail on Wednesday by the Supreme Court in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case involving the alleged killings of five people in October 2021 when vehicles in his convoy allegedly ran over a group of farmers protesting the farm laws.
The court ordered Mishra to leave the state of Uttar Pradesh within a week of being granted interim release and to avoid remaining in either the state of UP or the NCT of Delhi while on interim bail. He is only permitted to enter the State of UP to attend the trial court proceedings and must turn in his passport.
Bail will be revoked in the event that Mishra, his family, or supporters try to persuade or threaten a witness directly or indirectly.
He is required to routinely attend trial court proceedings and is not permitted to request an adjournment. Mishra’s bail will be revoked if it is determined that he is attempting to delay the trial.
Notably, the bench, using its suo-motu powers, also granted temporary release to four others who are charged in the counter-case (filed against the farmers). They are instructed to provide bail bonds to the trial court in order to be freed on interim bail awaiting further orders.
A bench made up of Justices Surya Kant and JK Maheshwari agreed to delay the decision on Mishra’s routine bail application in order to assess the potential effects of his release on the fairness of his trial. The trial court will submit a report on the status of the witnesses being cross-examined before the petition is posted for instructions on March 14.
The bench stated that a balancing approach was required to balance the right to personal liberty and ensure the fair trial after taking into account of the concerns expressed regarding the free and fair trial.
On January 19, the bench had reserved decisions in the matter following hearings from Senior Attorney Mukul Rohatgi for Mishra, Additional Attorney General of the UP Garima Prashad, and Senior Attorney Dushyant Dave for the kin of the criminal victims.
