New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said that the trial of the Lakhimpur Kheri case is on the right path and is going on at a good pace. The court said that it has been receiving reports regularly from the Trial court judge, the trial is happening and cross-examination is also going on.
The Supreme Court bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice V Ramasubramanian was hearing a petition filed by prime accused Ashish Mishra, son of Union Minister and BJP leader. Ajay Mishra, seeking bail in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case. The court had granted him interim bail earlier on account of no time limit till when the trial can be going on. Today the court extended the interim bail.
The court, while granting bail to Mishra earlier, had also asked the trial court to send reports regarding the trial. The court said today that it has been receiving regular reports and contrary to Advocate Prashant Bhushan's claim that it is slow-paced, the trial is in fact going on at a good pace.
"Not slow-paced. Chief examination of three witnesses complete. The presiding officer was not available only on one day," the court observed. The court said that it doesn't want to use the term monitoring but it is indirectly supervising the trial and it will continue with the same status quo. It ordered interim directions to continue and directed the trial court to appraise the apex court of the future progress of the case.
Earlier during the hearing of the same case on Monday, the Supreme Court had said nobody except the accused, victims' representatives, and their lawyers shall be present in the court conducting the trial in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence cases in which Union minister Ajay Kumar Mishra's son Ashish is among those facing prosecution.
