A court in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, delayed the start of daily hearings in the Akhlaq lynching case due to a missing key prosecution witness. The witness’s absence led to the postponement of the scheduled daily hearing at the Surajpur court on January 6. The court has rescheduled the proceedings for January 8 and ordered the witness to appear under police protection.
Yusuf Saifi, the advocate for Akhlaq’s family, explained that the witness couldn’t attend the hearing as a family member had passed away recently. Due to this unfortunate circumstance, the witness was unable to present his statement in court, leading to the adjournment of the hearing to January 8.
The Surajpur court had initially mandated daily hearings in the case after rejecting the Uttar Pradesh government’s request to drop the prosecution against the accused. Rejecting the plea on December 23, the court highlighted the lack of compelling or legally valid reasons for withdrawing the case. Stressing the seriousness of the crime, the court insisted on a continuous trial against all the accused, starting from January 6 without any breaks.
Currently, there are 14 accused individuals in the case, all of whom are out on bail. Following the government’s attempt to withdraw the case, Akhlaq’s wife, Ikraman, had taken the matter to the Allahabad High Court. However, with the Surajpur court’s decision to proceed with the trial, her plea before the High Court has become irrelevant.
In a bid to ensure witness protection, the court instructed the Police Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) in Greater Noida to provide adequate security to any witness expressing fear or seeking protection. The Akhlaq lynching case, which dates back to 2015, sparked national outrage and significant political and social discussions. The incident, where Mohammad Akhlaq was killed by a mob in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, following allegations of cow slaughter, raised concerns about mob violence and the enforcement of law.
