UP elections; SC dismisses interim bail for Azam Khan to campaign

Mohammad Azam Khan, leader of the Samajwadi Party, was turned down by the Supreme Court on Tuesday and instructed to move the Allahabad High Court, where his bail case is pending.

Despite repeated requests for hearing on Khan's bail plea, senior advocate Kapil Sibal submitted before a Bench headed by Justice L. Nageswara Rao that the case had not been heard for three to four months.

Besides the 80 cases Khan has been charged with, Sibal said he has already been granted bail in many of the cases. He alleged his client has been denied bail in a few cases and the state government does not want him to campaign.

Sibal responded by saying politics are already present in the case before the court, along with Justice B.R. Gavai.

According to the high court, the plea should be taken up expeditiously and decided.

In response to the writ petitions filed seeking interim bail, the bench stated: "We cannot entertain them."

The high court simply adjourned the case after Sibal pressed those cases related to events long ago.

Khan had filed an application in the Supreme Court seeking an interim bail to campaign for the Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. The top court asked the high court to take into account the concerns raised by Khan.