TNN
A Lucknow bench of Allahabad high court has sought report from the Special NIA/ATS court Lucknow on why the trial in an UAPA case against two terror accused has not progressed despite repeated directions for its expeditious conclusion.
Lucknow: A Lucknow bench of Allahabad high court has sought report from the Special NIA/ATS court Lucknow on why the trial in an UAPA case against two terror accused has not progressed despite repeated directions for its expeditious conclusion.A bench of Justice Rajesh Singh Chauhan and Justice Ram Manohar Narayan Mishra observed that the trial court had not shown ‘proper indulgence’ in complying with the HC directions. Noting that there appeared to be no progress in the trial, the bench said that in such circumstances the fundamental right of the accused to speedy trial under Article 21 of the Constitution required consideration.Accused Ansad Badruddin and Firoz have been in custody since Feb 2021 in a case registered under the IPC, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Explosive Substances Act, and Arms Act.The HC had on Dec 7, 2022, directed the trial court to conclude the proceedings expeditiously, preferably within one year. Subsequently, in Jan 2024, it had directed that prosecution witnesses should be cross-examined after their examination-in-chief instead of deferring cross-examination until the examination-in-chief of all witnesses was completed.As the trial did not conclude, the accused moved fresh bail plea. Hearing this plea, the bench noted that there are 18 prosecution witnesses, yet the cross-examination of PW-2, the FIR informant, remains incomplete despite coercive steps and an opportunity for examination through video conferencing.The next hearing will be on Aug 10.
