The Supreme Court on Monday asked why Uttar Pradesh missed out on filing an appeal against bail granted to Ashish Mishra, prime accused in the Lakhimpur Kheri case and the son of a Union Minister, despite admitting to the gravity of the crime and inspite of the Special Investigation Team urging it to do so.
The court is hearing the appeal made by the bereaved families for cancellation of bail granted to Mr. Mishra by the Allahabad High Court.
“The question is why did you [Uttar Pradesh] not challenge the bail? You knew the circumstances under which we formed the SIT and requested a retired judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court to monitor the investigation... You yourself admitted the offence is very serious. You say you vehemently opposed the bail application of the accused in the High Court... So we expected you to have acted on the suggestion of the SIT and the monitoring judge to appeal against the bail... You did not...” Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana, heading a three-judge Bench, asked Uttar Pradesh, represented by senior advocate Mahesh Jethmalani.
