Woman accused in Sambhal violence case released by court for lack of evidence

Sambhal: A local court here has ordered the release of a woman accused in last year's Sambhal violence case due to lack of evidence.

The locals clashed with the police on November 24 last year during a survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid. It resulted in the deaths of four people and injuries to 29 police personnel.

Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Aditya Singh on Wednesday issued the order to release the accused, Farhana, on a bail bond of Rs 1 lakh, officials said.

Farhana is the first accused to be released in the case, the officials added.

The violence involved stone pelting, firing and arson, following which the police arrested 79 individuals, including Farhana.

Her advocate, Gani Anwar, said she was arrested based on an informant's tip-off but was later found innocent during the investigation.

"We approached senior officials and requested a fair probe. The investigation confirmed her innocence and she was released," Anwar said.

According to officials, the court ordered her release after it was established that there was insufficient evidence against her.

The Uttar Pradesh Assembly on Tuesday witnessed uproar by opposition Samajwadi Party (SP) members during Governor Anandiben Patel's address to the House, forcing adjournment of the proceedings for an hour.

As soon as the governor started her address to the joint sitting of the House on the first day of the Budget session, SP members raised slogans like 'Governor go back' and 'Give figures of deaths in Kumbh'.

Amidst the uproar, Patel ended the address in just over 8 minutes.

Given the uproar by SP MLAs during the Governor's address, the proceedings of the Assembly were adjourned from 11:22 am till 12:30 pm.

Ahead of the Budget session of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly on Tuesday, Samajwadi Party members staged a demonstration on assembly premises over various issues, including Sambhal and the death of devotees in the Kumbh stampede.