‘Not slow paced’, says Supreme Court on trial in Lakhimpur Kheri violence case

The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a contention that the trial in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case, involving the son of Union Minister Ajay Kumar Mishra as an accused, was “slow paced".

The top court also said it would continue to have an indirect supervision on the case.

Read | Lakhimpur Kheri case: Ashish Mishra released from jail

On January 25, 2023, it had granted interim bail for eight weeks to Ashish Mishra and directed him to leave Uttar Pradesh within one week of his release from jail.

On Tuesday, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and J K Maheshwari asked the sessions judge holding with the trial of the case to keep apprising it about the future developments of the trial.

Appearing for the victims, advocate Prashant Bhushan expressed concern about the “slow pace of the trial”. He pointed out that about 200 prosecution witnesses have to be examined in the case.

The bench replied that the trial is not slow paced and the court has received three letters from the trial judge.

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Ashish Mishra, said following the apex court's order, his client was released from jail and he has appeared before the trial court on every date of hearing.

Read | Brother of Lakhimpur violence's witness attacked by youth

Referring to the January 25 order, the bench said the interim directions would continue to operate. Citing the letters received from the First Additional District and Sessions Judge, Lakhimpur Kheri, the bench said examination of three witnesses is over while cross-examination of one of them is going on.

“We are not using the word monitoring but we are having indirect supervision on the trial and we will do that,” the bench said.

"Let this status continue for some more time," the bench further said, posted the matter for further hearing in May.

On December 6, 2022, a trial court had framed charges against Mishra and 12 others for the alleged offences of murder, criminal conspiracy and others in the case of death of the protesting farmers in Lakhimpur Kheri.

On October 3, 2021, eight people were killed in Lakhimpur Kheri district's Tikunia in violence, triggered when farmers were protesting against UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya's visit to the area.

The FIR by the Uttar Pradesh police claimed four farmers were mowed down by an SUV, in which Ashish Mishra was seated.

Following the incident, a driver and two BJP workers were allegedly lynched by angry farmers. A journalist also died in the violence. Ashish Mishra claimed he was not present in the offending vehicle.