Farmers Movement Archive

Trial begins in Kheri violence case

Bareilly: The trial in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case commenced on Monday in the chief judicial magistrate's court via video conferencing. Thirteen of the accused, including Union minister Ajay Mishra Teni's son Ashish Mishra, were brought from the jail where they are lodged and produced before the judge. Ajay Mishra's brother-in-law Virendra Shukla, who has been charged under Section 177 of the Motor Vehicle Act, was granted bail after he surrendered before the court. TURNS HERE He was accused of hiding the third SUV in Ashish's convoy that allegedly ran over five persons -- four farmers and a journalist -- who were at that time protesting against the now rolled-back farm laws. The case was later in the day sent to the district and sessions court where the next hearing will be on January 20. "This is procedural and is followed in every criminal case after the chargesheet is filed and the charges framed," senior prosecution officer (SPO) S P Yadav told TOI. A special investigation team (SIT) had filed a 5,000-page chargesheet against all the accused on January 3 in relation to the violence that took place on October 3 last year. Four farmers and a journalist were allegedly mowed down by Ashish’s convoy. Three BJP supporters were killed in a retaliatory attack by enraged farmers. The minister's son is the main accused in the case. “After Shukla's bail, two counsels, Ramashish Mishra and Chandran Singh, appeared on behalf of 12 of the accused and were provided with a copy of the chargesheet by the court. All the accused made an appearance through video conferencing at 4 pm. By then, the court had completed procedures to commit the file to the district and sessions court, where the case is expected to go for further trial from the next date of hearing,” the SPO said. Ashish's counsel Awadhesh Singh had already received a copy of the chargesheet earlier. An FIR was initially registered under Sections 302 (murder), 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting with deadly weapons), 149 (offence committed in prosecution of common object), 279 (rash driving), 338 (causing grievous hurt to any person by doing any act so rashly), 304A (causing death by negligence) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC. On December 14, the SIT called the incident “a premeditated one and not an act of negligence” in court. The court later dropped sections pertaining to "accidents" from the FIR and included Sections 307 (attempt to murder), 326 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt using weapon which is likely to cause death), and 34 (criminal acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the IPC, along with sections 3 (25), 5 (27) and 30 of the Arms Act. ReplyReply allForward

The Times of India

2022-01-11

Bareilly