State government’s move to give relief to one of the most prominent cabinet colleague of chief minister Akhilesh Yadav was thwarted when a local court at Rampur rejected the plea in this regard on Wednesday.
Government sought withdrawal of a case lodged against Azam Khan in connection with hate speech and derogatory remarks alleged to be made by Azam Khan against then chief minister Mayawati in 2007.
Reports said that hearing the arguments of the government’s counsel on Wednesday morning, Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) B K Pandey refused to accept the state government's application for the withdrawal of the case registered by the police during the Mayawati government. The judge observed that there were discrepancies in the Sections mentioned in the charge-sheet and that given in the application filed by the government to withdraw case against Azam Khan. The complaint was registered against Azam Khan at the Tanda police station under SC/ST Act in 2007, charging him with delivering a hate speech and allegedly using derogatory remarks against BSP supremo and then Chief Minister Mayawati.
Earlier also government tried to withdraw cases against several of the militants whom they claimed to be innocent and that the Anti-Terrorists Squad (ATS) had fabricated charges of terror against them. However, in that matter also different courts which are hearing the matter turned plea of the Government. Not only this, even the High Court took strong reservation against government that why they wanted to withdraw terror charges when the matter was already under trial after the accused were charge-sheeted by their agency.
One of the militant of Harkat-ul-Jehade-Islami (HuJI), Khalid Mujahid, against whom government moved application to withdraw case and was turned by a local court in Bara Banki also died under mysterious circumstances while he was taken from Court at Faizabad to lodge him back at lucknow District Jail. Government already ordered a judicial enquiry in the matter and even recommended a probe by the sleuths of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as the family members and a large section of the community alleged it to be well orchestrated murder. However, till now the CBI not took up the matter though they also not turned down the request so far.