The Supreme Court has declined a plea of Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni seeking to transfer the Uttar Pradesh government’s appeal challenging his acquittal in a 22-year-old murder case from High Court’s Lucknow bench to the Allahabad bench.
A bench of Chief Justice UU Lalit and Justice Bela M Trivedi asked Mishra to make a request before the High Court to let the senior counsel, representing him, appear through video-conferencing if he is unable to come down to Lucknow. “In case the senior counsel is unable to come down to Lucknow, a request for allowing said counsel to make submissions through video-conferencing may be considered by the High Court,” the bench stated in its order.
Mishra had approached the apex court while challenging the High Court order which rejected his request to transfer the government’s appeal from the Lucknow bench to the Allahabad bench.
Union Minister of State for Home had sought the transfer on the ground that the senior counsel representing him was ordinarily based in Allahabad and because of his old age, it would not be possible for him to go all the way to Lucknow for arguments.
As per the case, Mishra is accused of killing a local entrepreneur, Prabhat Gupta, over a business rivalry in Tikunia town of Uttar Pradesh in July 2000.
In 2004, he was acquitted by the trial court and challenging that order, the Uttar Pradesh government approached the High Court in 2004.
The matter is still pending in the High Court.