HC lambasts UP govt over terror cases

The Samajwadi Party (SP) government came in for sharp criticism from the Allahabad High Court for attempting to withdraw cases against the accused in the terror strikes across the state.

“Who will decide if someone is a terrorist. When the matter is before the court then let it decide who a terrorist is. Is the government encouraging terrorism by taking initiatives to free them,” the court observed on Thursday while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the move.

“Today you will release the terrorist, tomorrow you may honor them with Padmabhushan,” the bench comprising Justice R K Agarwal and Justice R R Maurya further observed. Two social activists from Varanasi had filed a PIL in the High Court challenging the UP government’s move to withdraw cases on the accused in four terror attacks in UP in 2006 and 2008.  The court has directed the government to file a detailed reply and posted the matter for further hearing on November 29. It has asked the state government to furnish the reasons that prompted it to withdraw the cases. The government had sought a report from the authorities in the districts and the law department over the possibility of withdrawing cases against the accused named in the court blasts at Varanasi in 2006 and the attack on the CRPF camp at Rampur in 2008.