Rampur (Uttar Pradesh), July 18 (IANS) In a setback to jailed Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan, the MP-MLA Special Court (Sessions Trial) here on Saturday rejected his appeal against a two-year sentence awarded by a lower court for his objectionable remark against a district magistrate in 2019.
After the court’s decision to uphold the sentence awarded to the SP leader, Prosecution Officer Seema Rana said, “An appeal was filed in the court of the Special Judge (MP-MLA/Sessions Court) Vijay Kumar. This appeal was lodged against the conviction order passed by the lower court. Today, Mohammad Azam Khan’s appeal has been dismissed, and the order of the lower court has been upheld.”
On May 16, Special Magistrate Shobhit Bansal handed down a two-year sentence to the SP leader for the objectionable remark against the then District Magistrate during the Lok Sabha election campaign in 2019. The court had also slapped a penalty of Rs 5,000 on him.
Soon after, Azam Khan had appealed against his conviction in the MP-MLA Special Court (Sessions Trial), which rejected his plea on Saturday.
The case pertains to a roadshow held in the Bhot police station area of Rampur during the 2019 election campaign, when Azam Khan was contesting as the Samajwadi Party candidate.
According to the prosecution, a video of Azam Khan’s statement, in which he allegedly made derogatory remarks against the then District Magistrate, had gone viral on social media, following which the Election Commission took cognisance of the matter and sought a report.
During the alleged incident in Mankara village in Rampur, Azam Khan had called the DM a ‘Tankhaiya’ (salaried person) and urged people not to take him seriously. He also said that after the election, he will make the officials clean his shoes.
Subsequently, a case was lodged at the Bhot police station on the complaint of the then SDM of Tanda and Assistant Returning Officer of Chamraua Assembly constituency, Ghanshyam Tripathi. After the investigation, the police filed a charge sheet, and the trial proceeded in the MP-MLA court.
–IANS
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