Sambhal Violence | Allahabad High Court Extends Stay On CJM Order For FIR Against Cops Until April 21

The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday extended the interim stay on a Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) order that had directed the registration of an FIR against senior police officials in connection with the November 2024 Sambhal violence.A bench of Justice Samit Gopal passed the order extending the relief while hearing a petition moved by former Sambhal Circle Officer Anuj Kumar Chaudhary and former Kotwali in-charge Anuj Tomar challenging the CJM's order.During the hearing on March 24, the counsel for the complainant served a counter-affidavit to the petitioners. The Court granted the petitioners three weeks to file their rejoinder affidavit."Interim order, if any, shall remain in currency till the next date of listing," Justice Gopal stated in its order scheduling the matter for its next hearing on April 21, 2026.For context, the matter pertains to an order passed last month by the then CJM of Sambhal, Vibhanshu Sudheer. Acting on a complaint filed by Yameen, the father of a youth alleged to have been injured during the November 2024 violence, the Magistrate directed the registration of an FIR against ASP Anuj Chaudhary and other officers. The complainant alleged that the police officials had opened fire upon his son with the intent to kill. The police officers and the UP Government subsequently approached the High Court. On February 10, the Government counsels [Additional Advocate General (AAG) Manish Goyal and GA AK Sand] had primarily argued in the HC that the Magistrate had exceeded the boundaries of the BNSS by ignoring mandatory safeguards under the law and that the police officials were not given any opportunity to explain the allegations against them before the Magistrate.On the other hand, Senior Counsel SFA Naqvi, appearing for the complainant, raised the issue of the petition's maintainability. He argued that the state government was supporting the police officials working under the principal secretary (home).He had strongly contended that the Home Secretary, who had approached the court, was required to act in a parens patriae capacity. "The protector of the citizen. A person has been shot, he is to protect the citizens...at this stage, the state is jumping to protect its own officers which cannot be allowed otherwise the justice will derail," Naqvi had contended.The High Court had left the question of maintainability open, which will be considered now that the counter-affidavits are being placed on record. Notably, just a week after passing the initial order directing the FIR against the police officials, CJM Vibhanshu Sudheer was transferred to Sultanpur by the High Court.

Sambhal Violence | Allahabad High Court Extends Stay On CJM Order For FIR Against Cops Until April 21

Sparsh Upadhyay

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