High court stays UP government’s move to withdraw cases against terror accused

LUCKNOW: In a setback to AkhikeshYadav-ledSamajwadi Party (SP) government in Uttar Pradesh, the Lucknow bench of Allahabad high court on Friday stayed move to withdraw cases against accused facing trial in terror cases.

Friday’s order was passed by a vacation bench of Justices Rajiv Sharma and Mahendra Dayal on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by five lawyers, including Ranjana Agnihotri, also a counsel in the Ayodhya title suits.

 In the previous hearing on June 5, the court had expressed concern over the manner in which the withdrawal of terror cases was being sought by the state government. It had asked the government whether it had got permission from the Centre on the issue.

The PIL had challenged government’s controversial decision to withdraw terror cases against accused in the 2007 serial blasts in Lucknow, Varanasi and Faizabad, in which 16 people were killed and more than 60 were injured.

 The PIL stated that in all terror cases, the government granted sanction for prosecution of the accused on the basis of material collected by the investigating agencies. Hence, it added, the government cannot recall, review or nullify the sanction orders by proceeding to withdraw these cases.

It further said that the accused were also booked under central legislations like the Unlawful Activities (Prevention ) Act, Arms Act and Explosives Act. It said Section 321 of Criminal Procedure Code provides that the permission of the Centre is necessary for withdrawing of cases and charged that the state government has not taken any such permission.

Earlier, in April this year, the government had moved an application to withdraw cases in a Barabanki court which is hearing cases of Tariq Qasmi and Khalid Mujahid accused in 2007 serial blasts cases. The Barabanki court had then rejected the application.

 In the meantime, government came out with an order to withdraw cases against 16 other Muslim youth booked for terror in different parts of the state.

The stay order has come as a jolt for the SP which was eyeing Muslim votes in the next Lok Sabha elections.

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