Allahabad HC orders Uttar Pradesh govt to pay Rs 50,000 to man jailed in false anti-conversion case
Lucknow: The Allahabad High Court has imposed a fine of Rs 75,000 on the Uttar Pradesh government in a false anti-conversion case, directing the state to pay Rs 50,000 to the petitioner, Umed alias Ubaid Khan, who was jailed for one and a half months even after the alleged victim had stated before a magistrate that she had left home voluntarily.
A division bench of Justices Abdul Moin and Babita Rani passed the order on October 30 while hearing a petition filed by Khan and others, who were arrested under the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, The Indian Express reported on Wednesday.
The petitioners had sought to quash a First Information Report (FIR) lodged at Matera police station in Bahraich district, accusing them of abducting a woman and attempting to convert her religion.
The bench ordered Khan’s release, noting that even after the woman had stated before a magistrate that she had gone to Delhi voluntarily to meet her daughter, the police continued the probe and kept the accused in custody.
“This petition is a glaring example of the state authorities failing and scrambling over each other in order to score brownie points,” the newspaper quoted the court as saying.
Describing the police action as “vexatious”, the bench ordered the state to pay Rs 50,000 to Khan and deposit the remaining Rs 25,000 with the court’s Legal Aid Services.
The case pertains to a complaint filed on September 13 by Pankaj Kumar, a resident of Bahraich, alleging that his wife had gone missing with jewellery and cash, and that five men, including Khan, had lured her away. Police booked the accused under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita sections pertaining to kidnapping and under the state’s anti-conversion law.
The woman returned home and gave a statement, following which police added charges of criminal breach of trust, stolen property and a provision of the 2021 Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act. Khan was arrested on September 18.
However, on September 19, the woman gave a fresh statement before the magistrate, saying that she had left home voluntarily due to “regular domestic abuse” by her husband. In this statement, she did not allege any attempt at religious conversion and handed over all her jewellery to the police. Her lawyer later told the High Court that her earlier statement had been made under threats and coercion from her husband and in-laws, the report added.
“The court, having gone through the entire records… proceeds to exercise powers vested in it under Article 226 of the Constitution of India to quash the FIR and all consequential proceedings,” the court stated.
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Bihar CM walks to secretariat from official residence after PM's appeal to spend wisely
Patna (PTI): Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary on Friday walked from his official residence to the cabinet secretariat in Patna with senior officials, heeding to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal for cutting down fuel consumption and spending more wisely in view of the West Asia crisis.
Choudhary travelled on foot around 500 metres from the Lok Sewak Awas (CM’s official residence) to the cabinet secretariat office in the morning, accompanied by the officials.
Earlier, the chief minister had ordered slashing the size of his cavalcade, prompting cabinet colleagues to follow suit.
Choudhary, who became the first BJP leader to head a government in Bihar last month, had also said that his government is planning several steps to reduce the use of fuel, including promoting work-from-home and observing a ‘no vehicle day’ once a week.
To minimise travel requirements, he had said all state government departments have been directed to hold meetings through video-conferencing.
Choudhary had also said directions have been issued to cut down the use of palm oil in canteens at government offices.
Emphasising that the Centre was trying to shield people from the adverse impact of the conflict in West Asia, the PM had on May 10 called for judicious use of fuel, postponement of gold purchases and foreign travel, among other measures, to strengthen the economy.
