The Allahabad High Court granted interim relief to SP MP Zia Ur Rehman Barq by staying proceedings in the Sambhal violence case. The court has asked the Uttar Pradesh government to respond within three weeks.
Prayagraj (UP): The Allahabad High Court has given temporary relief to Samajwadi Party (SP) Member of Parliament (MP) Zia Ur Rehman Barq by putting a stay on the ongoing proceedings in the Sambhal violence case at the lower court.
The case will now be on hold while the state government prepares its reply. The High Court has asked the Uttar Pradesh government to submit its response within three weeks. The next hearing in the matter has been scheduled for September 9, according to media.
The case was heard by a single-judge bench of Justice Sameer Jain. Senior advocates Imran Ullah, Vineet Vikram, and Iqbal Ahmed represented MP Barq, while Additional Advocate General Manish Goyal appeared on behalf of the Uttar Pradesh government.
This case relates to the violence that broke out near Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal in November 2023, which led to the death of four people.
The Uttar Pradesh Police filed a chargesheet against MP Zia Ur Rehman Barq and others in June this year. Sambhal Superintendent of Police (SP) KK Bishnoi stated:
“A total of 12 cases were registered, out of which the police filed seven. Till yesterday, police had filed a chargesheet in all the cases. A total of 92 people have been arrested and sent to jail till now. Yesterday, sheets were filed against MP Zia Ur Rehman Barq, Jama Masjid Sadar chief Zafar Ali, and others under 335/2024.”
SP Bishnoi further added:
“MP Zia ur Rehman Barq, son of Sambhal MLA, Sohail Iqbal and several others were named; after a probe, Sohail Iqbal was let off.”
The police also accused the MP of delivering speeches that allegedly provoked the crowd. Bishnoi explained:
“MP Zia ur Rehman Barq not only gave inflammatory speeches but also ensured the crowd gathered on 24th November. He spoke to Jama Masjid Sadar on the intervening night of November 23-24 to make sure the survey doesn’t happen. Police have charge-sheeted the Member of Parliament in this case.”
According to the police, the investigation found that Barq allegedly made a provocative speech that incited violence.
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Initially, Sohail Iqbal — son of SP MLA Iqbal Mehmood — was also named in the case, but his name was later removed from the final chargesheet due to lack of sufficient evidence.
The petition filed by MP Zia Ur Rehman Barq before the High Court seeks to cancel or quash the chargesheet submitted by the police in connection with the Sambhal violence case.
Case Title:
Zia Ur Rehman Barq vs State of Uttar Pradesh
Click Here to Read Previous Reports on Sambhal violence case
