SC refuses interim relief to SP leader Azam Khan’s son in criminal case

New Delhi: The Supreme Court Wednesday refused to grant interim relief to Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan’s son Mohammad Abdullah Azam Khan who sought that the trial court in Uttar Pradesh be asked not to pass a final order in a pending criminal case against him until his juvenile claim is ascertained.

On September 26, the apex court had directed the Moradabad district judge to decide the aspect of the juvenility of Mohammad Abdullah Azam Khan as per procedure under the Juvenile Justice Act. The apex court directed the trial court to send the finding to it for further consideration. This order was passed in a 2008 criminal case in which Abdullah was convicted and as a consequence, he was disqualified as an MLA.

Today, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Abdullah Azam Khan, contended before a bench of justices M M Sundresh and Prashant Kumar Mishra that till the juvenility report is filed, the trial court be asked not to proceed with a pending criminal case and convict the accused.

Sibal submitted that heavens are not going to fall if the trial court does not pass the final order. He said, “Sometimes law stands in the way of justice. This is that kind of case”. However, the bench was not convinced to grant the interim relief to Abdullah. “We find no reason to pass any interim order at this stage. As per earlier order, post the main matter after the report on juvenility is filed”, said the bench.

In 2008, a criminal case was registered against Abdullah and his father at the Chhajlet police station in Moradabad under sections 341 (wrongful restraint) and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). It was alleged that they had blocked traffic after their vehicle was stopped by police for checking.

In February, Abdullah was sentenced to two years in jail in the case. The sentence led to his disqualification as an MLA in the Uttar Pradesh assembly.