LUCKNOW: In another jolt to senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan, the special MP MLA court in Rampur on Thursday sentenced him to 10-year imprisonment and imposed a penalty of Rs 14 lakh in connection with the Dungarpur Basti demolition, loot and intimidation case.
State government advocate in the MP/MLA court Seema Singh Rana said that Azam Khan was convicted in the case on Wednesday and the quantum of sentence was pronounced on Thursday.
"He has been sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment. He has also been penalised with a total amount of Rs 14 lakh. The matter pertained to Dungarpur Basti, where complainant Abrar had lodged a case against Khan for forcibly entering into his house in 2019. He had also alleged loot and theft along with intimidation. His house was demolished using a bulldozer leading to forcible eviction of his family," Rana said.
The second accused in the case, Barkat Ali, was sentenced to seven-year imprisonment and a penalty of Rs 6 lakh.
On Wednesday, the Rampur MP/MLA court had convicted the SP stalwart and former UP minister in the case registered against him in 2019 at Ganj police station in Rampur under Sections 392, 452, 504, 506 and 120 B of Indian Penal Code (IPC). Co-accused contractor Barkat Ali was convicted under Sections 392, 452, 504 and 506 of IPC.
The Dungarpur case against Khan dates back to the Samajwadi Party regime in 2016 when houses under the Aasra Awas Yojana were built in Dungarpur area near the Rampur Police Line.
Some people were already living there and their dwellings were demolished in 2016 claiming that they were occupying government land. In 2019, when the BJP government came to power in the state, 12 cases were registered in Ganj Kotwali of Rampur.
On March 18, Khan was sentenced to seven years of imprisonment with a penalty of Rs 5 lakh in a similar case that was registered on the complaint of Jail Road resident Ehtesham. Former CO City Ale Hasan Khan, former municipal president Azhar Khan and Bareilly contractor Barkat Ali were also sentenced to five-year jail terms with a fine of Rs 2 lakh each.
Apart from this, in a verdict related to another case registered by Ruby, wife of Karamant Ali, in connection with the Dungarpur colony demolition, Azam was acquitted by the court on January 31, 2024.
A total of 89 cases were registered against Azam Khan in 2019, most of which are pending in court.
Currently, Azam Khan is lodged in Sitapur jail and his son Abdullah Azam in Hardoi jail. Azam Khan's wife and former MP Dr Tazeen Fatima, who had been lodged in Rampur jail, got bail from the Allahabad High Court in connection with a case related to forged birth certificates of Abdullah Azam. She was released from the jail on Wednesday following a court order.