Families of Lakhimpur Kheri Victims Challenge Bail of Minister’s Son in India’s Supreme Court

Violence erupted in the Lakhimpur Kheri district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh after four farmers and a journalist were mowed down by a vehicle allegedly being driven by Ashish Misra, son of Federal Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Misra Teni on 3 October 2021.

The families of the farmers killed in Lakhimpur Kheri district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh on Monday approached the Supreme Court to challenge the bail granted to Ashish Misra, the son of Federal Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra and the main person accused in the case.

The plea filed through advocate Prashant Bhushan said: "High Court granted bail without considering the heinous nature of the crime, the character of the overwhelming evidence against the accused in the chargesheet, the position and status of the accused with reference to the victim and witnesses, the likelihood of the accused fleeing from justice and repeating the offence and the possibility of his tampering with the witnesses and obstructing the course of justice."

It also stated that victims were prevented from bringing the relevant material to the notice of the High Court as their counsel got disconnected from the hearing of the bail matter on 18 January, 2022.

The petitioners said that they were forced to approach the top court since the state government failed to file an appeal against the Allahabad High Court order granting bail.

This is the second plea to be filed against the bail for the federal minister's son. Earlier, a petition was filed in the Supreme Court two days after he was released. The petitioners had raised the possibility of evidence tampering and threats to witnesses.

The petitioners also sought that the special investigation team file a status report in the case before the top court immediately.

Misra, who is the main person accused in the killing of protesting farmers in Lakhimpur Kheri was released on bail on 15 February. The bail was granted by the Allahabad High Court after lower courts rejected the requests.

In his bail plea, Misra had argued that he was not in his car when the incident took place and was at a sporting event in a nearby village.

The minister’s son was arrested on 9 October 2021 about a week after violence erupted in Lakhimpur Kheri district when a convoy of three vehicles drove through a crowd of farmers who were protesting against the now-repealed federal farm laws, in the village of Tikonia.

After four protesting farmers were run over by the convoy, three other people - the minister's driver and two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers - were beaten to death by the crowd in the ensuing violence.

The farmers alleged that the federal minister’s son was inside the car that had run over the four farmers, but he denied the allegations.

The Special Investigation Team inquiring into the Lakhimpur Kheri violence later said that there was a conspiracy to murder protesting farmers.

Opposition parties have been demanding the removal of Ajay Misra Teni from his ministerial post to ensure a fair investigation.