The Allahabad High Court recently denied bail to a man, accused of killing a woman who refused to convert her religion after marrying a Muslim man. The court took into account the severity of the crime, accused Shoeb Akhtar’s involvement, and the advanced stage of the trial in its decision to deny bail.
A chowkidar from Sinduriya village filed the first information report on September 21, 2020, against unknown persons. He alleged that while patrolling the area, locals informed him about a girl’s decapitated body found in a drain near the forest on the western side of the road.
Accused Ajaj Ahmad Asif and Shoeb Akhtar were apprehended together, and incriminating materials were recovered based on their disclosures.
The postmortem report confirmed that the cause of death of the woman was the ante-mortem separation of the neck from the body.
Sharmila, the deceased’s sister, stated that her sister had been pressured by co-accused Ajaj Ahmad and Shoeb Akhtar to convert to Islam. She claimed that Ajaj did not want to take her sister to his home unless she accepted Islam, which is why she was kept in a rented house. Since her sister refused to convert, she was allegedly murdered by Ajaj and Shoeb.
Shoeb Akhtar’s first bail application was rejected by the high court on January 24, 2023, considering the postmortem report. However, in October, 2023, Ajaj was granted bail.
In his second bail application, Akhtar’s counsel argued that since co-accused Ajaj Ahmad Asif, was granted bail by the high court, thus, Akhtar should also be released on bail.
On the other hand, the Additional Government Advocate opposed Akhtar’s bail, contending that Ajaj obtained bail by concealing the order in Akhtar’s first bail plea. He pointed out that Ajaj’s bail order incorrectly stated that he had been in jail for eight and a half years. The AGA further argued that the crime was heinous, and due to the gravity of the offence, Akhtar’s bail application should be denied.
The bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar Singh noted that according to the trial court’s report, nine out of 25 prosecution witnesses had already been examined. It also acknowledged the error in Ajaj Ahmad’s bail order regarding the period of detention.
Ultimately, the bench refused to grant bail to Shoeb Akhtar and directed the Superintendent of Police, Sonbhadra, to ensure the presence of all remaining prosecution witnesses at the next trial date.
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