The ruling ensures Samajwadi Party leader’s parliamentary membership remains intact
Team Clarion
ALLAHABAD — The Allahabad High Court on Monday set aside a lower court’s order convicting Samajwadi Party MP Afzal Ansari in a UP Gangster Act case linked to the murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai in 2005. Last year, the Ghazipur MP-MLA court had sentenced Ansari to four years of imprisonment.
The high court, meanwhile, dismissed the UP government’s appeal and criminal revision plea seeking enhancement of the sentence given to Ansari by the Ghazipur court.
The verdict comes as a major relief for the Samajwadi Party MP from Ghazipur.
With this, Ansari’s parliament membership is secure, as the high court’s decision ensures that he can continue his duties as an MP. The court had reserved its judgment on this matter on July 4.
Afzal Ansari had initially faced imprisonment on April 29, 2023, following the Ghazipur court’s verdict. This led to his parliamentary membership being revoked. However, the Supreme Court suspended the sentence, temporarily restoring his membership.
Afzal Ansari has had a varied political career. He first became an MP from Ghazipur on a Samajwadi Party ticket in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections. However, in November 2005, BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai was murdered, and Ansari was accused of conspiracy in December 2005, leading to his incarceration. Ansari later contested elections on BSP and National Ekta Dal tickets in 2009 and 2014, respectively, but was unsuccessful. He was re-elected as an MP in 2019 on a BSP ticket after an alliance between the SP and BSP, marking his second term in Parliament. His re-election was marred by the Ghazipur court’s 2023 sentencing under the Gangster Act, which has now been stayed by the Allahabad High Court.