New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday granted bail to three individuals accused in connection with the violence that erupted during a court-ordered survey of the Jama Masjid in Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal district last November.
A bench comprising Justices P.S. Narasimha and R. Mahadevan allowed the bail pleas of Danish, Faizan, and Nazir, who had challenged the Allahabad High Court’s order denying them bail.
The case arises from clashes that broke out on November 24, 2024, amid a survey to determine whether a temple once existed at the Jama Masjid site, as directed by a Chandausi court order issued on November 19, 2024.
The incident led to multiple FIRs and a wide-ranging probe into alleged conspiracies surrounding the violence.
Earlier, while rejecting Faizan’s bail plea, the Allahabad High Court had noted that he was identified in CCTV footage and that incriminating materials were recovered from his possession. Justice Ashutosh Srivastava also stated that Faizan’s alleged role in “stone pelting and arson” could not be ruled out at that stage.
Faizan’s counsel, however, argued that he was not named in the FIR and had been falsely implicated based on the confessions of co-accused, which, under Section 23 of the Bhartiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, are inadmissible as evidence.
The High Court clarified that its observations were confined to the bail decision and would not influence the trial proceedings.
The police charge sheet in the case names Samajwadi Party MP Ziaur Rahman Barq and the son of local MLA Iqbal Mahmood among the accused. In total, 37 individuals have been specifically identified, while an additional 3,750 others remain unnamed in connection with the November violence.
With IANS inputs