Supreme Court grants bail to Azam Khan, son in machine theft case

Setting aside an Allahabad High Court order denying them bail, the Supreme Court has granted bail to Samajwadi Party leader and former Uttar Pradesh minister Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam Khan in a machine theft case.

“Taking into consideration the facts and circumstances of the case, we are inclined to set aside the impugned order and grant bail to the appellants,” a bench of Justice MM Sundresh and Justice Rajesh Bindal said in its February 10 order.

The bench took into account the duration of incarceration already served by the accused and the fact that the chargesheet had also been filed in the case.

It directed the trial court to ensure that the father-son duo adhered to the bail conditions, including cooperating with the trial proceedings until their conclusion and refraining from attempts to influence or win over witnesses.

The trial court was empowered to proceed with the trial irrespective of the conduct of the parties involved, it said.

The case against Azam Khan, his son, and five others was lodged in 2022, with allegations stemming from the theft of a road-cleaning machine owned by Nagar Palika Parishad of Rampur district. The machine was later found at Jauhar University in Rampur, an institution associated with Khan. The FIR was filed by Wakar Ali Khan at Kotwali, Rampur in 2022, claiming that in 2014, the accused had stolen the government-owned road cleaning machine.