The Allahabad High Court has granted anticipatory bail to Umar Ansari, the son of mafia-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, in a criminal case registered against him during the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections for alleged violation of the model code of conduct.
The case pertains to a speech given by Umar Ansari’s brother and Mau MLA Abbas Ansari during the poll campaign.
While granting anticipatory bail to Umar Ansari, Justice Samit Gopal directed the state government to file its counter-affidavit within 10 days and directed to list this case on November 30 for next hearing.
During the course of hearing, the counsel for Umar Ansari submitted that the case was registered on March 4 last year for a speech made at a rally the day before. It is alleged that the speech could trigger unrest between communities and was a violation of the election code.
However, there is nothing on record to show that Umar Ansari gave any such speech which was prejudicial to the law and order, the counsel submitted.
The counsel for the state government opposed the anticipatory bail application, stating that the applicant has challenged the charge sheet filed against him in this case before the high court and then the Supreme Court and his petitions were rejected by both forums.
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After hearing both sides, the court said, “In the event of arrest of the applicant Umar Ansari…he shall be released on interim anticipatory bail till the next date of listing.”
Abbas Ansari, who contested and won the assembly polls as a candidate of the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP)-Samajwadi Party alliance, had allegedly said in the public rally that after forming the government in the state, no government officials would be transferred for the first six months as he had a score to settle with them.
