The Supreme Court has granted bail to Aadya Prasad Tiwari, one of the accused in the 2021 death of Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad president Mahant Narendra Giri, noting that the trial is expected to take considerable time and that Tiwari does not appear to be the principal accused.
A bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma set aside the Allahabad High Court’s October 14, 2025 order rejecting bail, and directed Tiwari’s release.
Mahant Narendra Giri, who headed the largest body of Hindu seers in India, was found hanging in his room at the Baghambari Mutt in Prayagraj on September 20, 2021. A purported suicide note and a video recorded before his death named his estranged disciple Anand Giri, Aadya Prasad Tiwari (then head priest of Bade Hanuman Mandir), and Tiwari’s son Sandeep as responsible for causing him immense mental distress.
The FIR was initially registered under IPC Section 306 (abetment of suicide) at George Town Police Station on September 21, 2021. However, following the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) probe and chargesheet filed on November 18, 2021, more serious charges of murder (Section 302) and criminal conspiracy (Section 120B) were invoked.
The top court highlighted the slow progress of the trial. The CBI has proposed to examine 150 witnesses, but only three have been examined so far.
“It is, therefore, clear that the trial is likely to take time to conclude. Even otherwise, the appellant does not appear to be the principal accused,” the bench said in its order dated January 8, 2026.
The court further noted that Tiwari has been in judicial custody since September 22, 2021, and that continued detention is not necessary at this stage.
Accordingly, the appeal was allowed and the bail granted, subject to the condition that Tiwari shall not tamper with evidence or influence witnesses. He is required to attend all trial proceedings unless specifically exempted, and any violation could result in cancellation of bail by the trial court.
According to the CBI chargesheet, the accused caused “grave mental trauma” to Mahant Giri, who feared defamation over an allegedly doctored video in which he was seen in a compromising position with a woman. The agency cited this threat as the main reason for his suicide.
The chargesheet named Anand Giri, Aadya Prasad Tiwari, and Sandeep Tiwari as key conspirators who abetted the suicide and planned to defame the seer.
