In a setback to the Uttar Pradesh government that appeared eager to get the case dismissed, a court in Surajpur on Tuesday (December 23) rejected the state’s plea to withdraw all charges against the accused in the 2015 lynching of Mohammad Akhlaq and instead directed fast-tracking the trial with daily hearings, reported The Indian Express. “A letter be sent to Police Commissioner of Gautam Buddha Nagar and Deputy Commissioner of Greater Noida to ensure that all kind of protection be provided to the evidences,” the Court said.
According to the news report, Additional District Judge Saurabh Dwivedi also directed that the case be categorised as “most important” and heard on a daily basis. The Court also directed the prosecution to record evidence in the case at the earliest. The case will be heard next on January 6.
Akhlaq (50) was lynched by a mob over rumours of alleged cow slaughter and storing its meat at his home in Dadri’s Bisada village on September 28, 2015. This lynching, among the most prominent to dot the Modi era in Indian politics had caused a national outrage at the time.
Citizens for Justice and Peace has tracked the case closely and in this detailed legal overview questioned the state’s motive to withdraw the case, a decade after the shameful and ghastly lynching at Dadri in Western Uttar Pradesh. This analysis may be read here.
On October 15, the UP government had moved an application to withdraw prosecution in the case, citing reasons from ranged from allegedly “inconsistent statements by Akhlaq’s relatives” in naming the accused; the fact that no firearm or sharp weapon was recovered from the accused, to the lack of any enmity or hostility recorded between the accused and the victim.
Yesterday, the Indian Express had reported that the UP government has now made essentially the same argument that two of the accused had presented earlier. The Indian Express reported Monday that in its application to withdraw the case against the men accused of lynching Mohammad Akhlaq, the Uttar Pradesh government has made essentially the same argument that two of the accused had presented when they applied successfully for bail more than eight years ago
On September 28, 2015, a mob gathered outside his house after an announcement from the village temple alleged that he had slaughtered a cow. Akhlaq and his son Danish, who tried to intervene, were dragged out of their home and assaulted until they fell unconscious. Akhlaq later died at a Noida hospital, while Danish survived after suffering severe head injuries and undergoing major surgery.
Police had registered an FIR at Jarcha police station under sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC ) 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly), 323 (assault), 504 (intentional insult to disturb peace), among others, based on a complaint by Akhlaq’s wife, Ikraman.
The state police filed the charge sheet on December 23, 2015, before the magistrate court in Surajpur, naming 15 people, including a minor, in connection with the lynching. All the accused are currently out on bail. However, the charge sheet had not specifically mentioned cow meat, as the final forensic report was not available at the time.
Related:
The Lynching of Mohammed Akhlaq
Victims of Gautankwad: Pehlu Khan