The Allahabad High Court has reserved its order on a bail application filed by senior Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Azam Khan in connection with a criminal case alleging illegal grabbing of the Quality Bar in Rampur district.
The matter came up before Justice Sameer Jain on Thursday. After hearing arguments from both sides — counsel for the applicant and the prosecution — the court reserved its decision.
The case stems from an FIR lodged in 2019 by Revenue Inspector Angraj Singh against Syed Jafar Ali Jafri, Tazeen Fatma (Azam Khan’s wife), and former MLA Abdullah Azam Khan (his son). Interestingly, Azam Khan’s name did not appear in the initial FIR. However, following a reinvestigation conducted nearly five years later, the senior SP leader was added as an accused in the matter.
The Quality Bar, central to the dispute, is located in Said Nagar Hardoi Patti on the highway under the jurisdiction of Civil Lines police station.
Appearing for Azam Khan, advocate Imran Ulla argued that there had been an “undue delay” in filing the FIR, raising doubts over the credibility of the case. He further submitted that a fresh investigation could not be legally carried out after such a long lapse of time.
The prosecution, however, maintained that the reinvestigation was justified and that sufficient material existed to implicate Azam Khan in the alleged property grabbing case.
The High Court is expected to pronounce its order after careful consideration of the submissions.
