[BREAKING] Allahabad High Court upholds acquittal of Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni in 23-year-old murder case

The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court Friday upheld the acquittal of Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni in a 23-year-old murder case [State of Uttar Pradesh v. Ajay Mishra @ Taini and 3 others]..A Division Bench of Justices Attau Rahman Masoodi and Om Prakash Shukla dismissed the appeal preferred by the State of Uttar Pradesh against the acquittal order passed by the trial court in the year 2004."Evidence recorded in the present case has been appreciated in its correct perspective and the Trial court has at no point of time missed the woods of the tree. Thus, we do not find any perversity in the order of acquittal passed by the Trial Court and in any case, the law presumes double presumption in favour of the accused after a due adjudication by the trial Court," the Court said.The prosecution has utterly failed to establish the chain of events which can be said to exclusively lead to the one and only conclusion, i.e., the guilt of the accused persons, the Court added while upholding acquittal of Mishra..The Court also dismissed the revision plea preferred by the complainant against the acquittal order..The case dates back to the year 2000, when a student leader Prabhat Gupta was shot dead near his house in Tikonia (Lakhimpur Kheri). Four persons including Mishra were named accused and were booked under Section 302 (murder) read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).The trial court acquitted Mishra and others in 2004. The Uttar Pradesh government moved the High Court in appeal against the same.The High Court reserved its verdict on March 12, 2018, but since it was not delivered within six months, the matter was re-listed for hearing.Earlier in the year 2022, on April 7, acting on a early-hearing application, the High Court directed that the matter be listed for final hearing on May 16, before an appropriate Bench.The case was then adjourned eight times.Meanwhile, Mishra moved the Supreme Court seeking transfer of the appeal from the Lucknow Bench of the High Court to the principal bench of the High Court at Prayagraj.The top court refused to transfer the plea, but had requested the High Court to hear the plea of Mishra for final disposal on November 10, 2022.On November 10, a division bench of Justices Ramesh Sinha and Renu Agarwal heard the matter reserved the judgment in the case. However, on December 21, 2022, it was directed that the case be posted for rehearing in January 2023 after one Rajeev Gupta, claiming himself to be the son of the complainant, sought to move an application for permission to submit written arguments.On February 21, 2023, the case was finally heard and the judgment was reserved..[Read Judgment]