Lakhimpur Kheri Case : Supreme Court Allows Ashish Mishra To Stay In Delhi For Treatment Of Mother & Daughter

The Supreme Court on Tuesday (September 26) allowed Ashish Mishra, the prime accused in the Lakhimpur Kheri case, to visit and stay in the National Capital Territory of Delhi to look after his ailing mother and to get treatment for his daughter.

A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Dipankar Datta modified the condition for the interim bail imposed as per the order passed on January 25 by which Mishra was prohibited from entering Delhi. Ashish Mishra, son of Union Minister Ajay Mishra, filed an application seeking modification of the condition by stating that his mother is admitted to the RML Hospital in Delhi. He further stated that his daughter needed treatment for leg deformities.

Taking a humanitarian view, the bench deemed it appropriate to allow the application, however on further conditions that Mishra should not participate in any public function in Delhi and that he should not address the media in relation to the sub judice case. The bench also clarified that the prohibition on entering the State of Uttar Pradesh except for attending the trial, imposed as per the order dated January 25, will continue to operate. Senior Advocate Siddharth Dave appeared for Mishra.

The case relates to the incident which took place in Lakhimpur Kheri in Uttar Pradesh in October 2021, where five persons where killed after Mishra's vehicle allegedly ran into a group of farmers who were protesting against the now repealed farm laws. There is a counter-case against the some of the farmers for allegedly lynching to death three persons, including Mishra's driver.

Few days after the incident, the Supreme Court took a suo motu case on a letter petition alleging police inaction in the case. Following sharp criticism from the Supreme Court, the Uttar Pradesh police arrested Mishra. The Supreme Court also constituted a Special Investigation Team and appointed a retired High Court judge to monitor the probe.

Initially, the Allahabad High Court had granted bail to Mishra on February 10, 2022, but it was set aside by the Supreme Court bench comprising the then CJI NV Ramana, Justice Surya Kant and Justice Hima Kohli in April 2022 after noting that the High Court took into account irrelevant considerations and ignored relevant factors. The bail application was then remanded to the High Court. The Supreme Court's order came in appeal filed by the relatives of the farmers who got killed in the crime.