Supreme Court pulls up UP govt over delay in Lakhimpur Kheri trial, seeks faster witness examination

New Delhi, May 8: The Supreme Court on Friday voiced serious concern over the slow progress in the trial related to the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence case, observing that no witnesses had been examined for the past two months in proceedings against Ashish Mishra and others accused in the matter.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi questioned the Uttar Pradesh government over the delay and said the status report submitted before the court failed to explain why witnesses were not appearing before the trial court.

Expressing dissatisfaction with the pace of the proceedings, the apex court directed the presiding judge to take all necessary legal measures to ensure the attendance of witnesses and expedite the trial within a fixed timeframe.

The court also sought a fresh progress report from the trial court before the next date of hearing scheduled in July.

During the hearing, senior advocate Siddharth Dave, appearing for Ashish Mishra — son of former Union minister Ajay Mishra — informed the bench that the number of witnesses examined in the main FIR had remained unchanged since March.

According to the status report, only 44 out of 131 listed witnesses have been examined so far in the primary case, while 72 witnesses are yet to depose and 15 have already been discharged. In the second FIR linked to the same incident, 26 of the 35 witnesses have testified, while statements of nine witnesses are still pending.

Questioning the state government’s handling of the matter, the bench asked what progress had been made over the last two months. The counsel representing Uttar Pradesh responded that only three to four witnesses were being called each day for recording evidence.

The Supreme Court, however, observed that more witnesses should be summoned daily so that proceedings do not come to a halt if some fail to appear. The bench also raised concern over the absence of official witnesses during the hearings.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, representing families of the deceased farmers, urged the court to intervene more firmly, alleging that the trial was not progressing effectively.

The apex court also took note of a third FIR registered last year regarding alleged intimidation of witnesses connected to the case. The court was informed that a chargesheet had already been filed against the main accused in that matter, while the alleged role of Ashish Mishra was still under investigation.

The bench directed the investigating officer to complete the probe in the witness intimidation case within four weeks and submit an appropriate report before the concerned court.

The violence in Lakhimpur Kheri on October 3, 2021, had claimed eight lives, including four farmers who were allegedly run over by an SUV during protests against the visit of Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya. The incident had triggered nationwide outrage and political controversy.

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