Allahabad High Court’s Justice Sameer Jain has recused himself from hearing Samajwadi Party leader Mohammad Azam Khan’s 2016 Yatim Khana eviction case. The earlier stay on the trial court’s final judgment will remain in effect until the next hearing.
Prayagraj: Justice Sameer Jain of the Allahabad High Court on Friday stepped back from hearing the case related to Samajwadi Party leader Mohammad Azam Khan concerning the alleged forcible eviction from Yatim Khana in Rampur in 2016.
The judge decided to recuse himself in the middle of the court proceedings and released the matter for hearing by another appropriate bench.
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However, while releasing the case, Justice Jain made it clear that the earlier High Court order, which had stayed the trial court from delivering its final judgment, will continue to remain in force until the next hearing date.
This means the trial court cannot pronounce any final decision in the case for now.
Advocate Shashwat Giri informed that the court stopped the hearing midway during arguments and chose not to proceed further.
As per the present court roster, Justice Sameer Jain is authorised to hear matters involving MPs and MLAs, but he still decided to withdraw from this particular case.
The case against Azam Khan arises from around 12 separate FIRs in which he and several others have been named as accused.
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These FIRs relate to an alleged incident that took place on October 15, 2016, when unauthorised structures were demolished from a waqf property known as Yateem Khana, registered as Waqf No. 157 in Rampur.
The property was reportedly cleared during an eviction drive which is now being challenged as illegal and forceful.
The FIRs were registered between 2019 and 2020 at the Kotwali police station in Rampur. Initially, these cases were being heard separately, but later, on August 8, 2024, they were merged into a single trial by the Special Judge (MP/MLA) Court in Rampur and registered as Special Case No. 45 of 2020.
The accused, including Azam Khan and other prominent individuals, are facing serious charges under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) such as dacoity, house trespass and criminal conspiracy.
Earlier, on June 11, the Allahabad High Court had passed an order stating that the trial could continue but no final judgment should be delivered by the trial court. This direction is still valid and remains operational.
The current petition before the High Court challenges the trial court’s order dated May 30, in which the trial court rejected the request of the accused to recall the informants and key prosecution witnesses.
These included Zafar Ahmad Farooqui, Chairman of the Sunni Central Waqf Board. The accused had also sought permission to present videographic evidence related to the 2016 eviction.
The defence argued that the video footage, which was allegedly acknowledged by Farooqui, could help prove their innocence by showing that they were not present at the eviction site during the incident.
According to them, this evidence is crucial as it may completely change the course of the case and establish that the accused were falsely implicated.
With Justice Jain recusing himself, the matter will now be listed before another bench, and the legal proceedings will remain on hold until further directions are issued by the High Court.
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