In a recent hearing, the Supreme Court extended the interim bail of Ashish Mishra, son of Union Minister Ajay Kumar Mishra, in connection with the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence case. The extension was granted pending the next hearing date, during which the court has requested a fresh update on the trial’s progress.
Justices Surya Kant and KV Viswanathan, overseeing the proceedings, directed the registry to obtain a progress report from the trial court since the last update on September 26, 2023. The decision comes after Ashish Mishra challenged a July 2022 Allahabad High Court ruling that denied him permanent bail.
Initially, on January 25, 2023, the Supreme Court had granted Mishra interim bail with strict conditions, including restrictions on his entry into Delhi-NCR and Uttar Pradesh, except for attending the trial. This was later amended on September 26 to allow him to visit Delhi for personal reasons, including medical treatment for his daughter and to attend to his ailing mother at the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital. However, he was barred from participating in public events or engaging with the media regarding the Lakhimpur case during these visits.
The violence in Lakhimpur Kheri erupted on October 3, 2021, resulting in the deaths of eight individuals, including four farmers who were protesting against the now-repealed farm laws. The incident escalated when it was alleged that a vehicle, reportedly carrying Mishra, plowed through the protesting farmers as they awaited the arrival of UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya.
Ashish Mishra was arrested shortly after the incident, within six days, with the police charge sheet suggesting that the act was premeditated. The chaos at the scene also led to the death of three individuals, pulled from their vehicles and beaten by the crowd, leading to additional legal proceedings.
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To thoroughly investigate the incident, the Supreme Court constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) in November 2021 and appointed Justice (Retd.) Rakesh Jain of the Punjab and Haryana High Court to oversee the probe. Following the completion of the investigation and the submission of the charge sheet to the Lakhimpur court, the SIT was disbanded in September of the previous year.
