Allahabad: The Allahabad High Court has granted bail to senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan in the Rampur Quality Bar land encroachment case. Justice Samir Jain delivered the order after reserving it on August 21, pointing to procedural lapses and prolonged delays in the investigation.
The case was first registered in 2019 by Revenue Inspector Angraj Singh against Syed Jafar Ali Jafri, Tazeen Fatma, and Abdullah Azam, alleging illegal possession of a commercial property in Said Nagar Hardoi Patti. Although Khan was not initially named, his name was added after a reinvestigation in 2024, nearly five years later.
Khan’s counsel, Imran Ulla, argued that the FIR was filed six years after the alleged encroachment of 2013 and that reopening the matter without new evidence amounted to political harassment. He said the reinvestigation was selective and violated principles of natural justice.
The High Court agreed that the delays undermined the case, a concern echoed in several other proceedings against Khan. The SP leader has faced more than 80 cases since 2019, many linked to violence and property disputes during the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. He has secured bail in most, including one granted by the Supreme Court in a 2008 rioting case.
Samajwadi Party leaders welcomed the verdict, calling it proof of political vendetta. The Rampur administration has not commented on whether it will appeal.
