AAP MLA Naresh Yadav convicted in Malerkotla Quran sacrilege case

A local court here on Friday convicted Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA from Delhi’s Mehrauli, Naresh Yadav in connection with the Malerkotla Quran sacrilege case.

The court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Parminder Singh Grewal is likely to announce the quantum of sentence on Saturday.

In March, 2021, Yadav along with another accused, Nand Kishore, was acquitted by a local court as the police failed to prove their allegations.

Two brothers – Vijay Kumar and Gaurav Kumar — were sentenced to two-year imprisonment with a fine of Rs 11,000.

Mohammad Ashraf of Malerkotla had filed a CRA Criminal Appeals against acquittal of Yadav in the Additional Session Court Sangrur (now Malerkotla) on April 19, 2021.

After the recovery of torn pages of Quran from Malerkotla city on June 24, 2016, the police had initially registered a case against Vijay Kumar and two others including Nand Kishore and Gaurav Kumar. But later the name of AAP MLA Naresh Yadav was added on the basis of circumstantial evidence and statements of other accused.

Yadav was arrested on July 24, 2016, on the charge of conspiracy to spread social unrest.

Later in 2018, Yadav had moved an application in a local court for an inquiry into suspicious transfer of Rs 90 lakh to the bank account of Vijay Kumar and his links with the RSS.