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| Edited By: DNA Web Team |Source: DNA Web Desk |Updated: Oct 27, 2022, 04:53 PM IST
Samajwadi Party leader and strong loyalist of Akhilesh Yadav, Azam Khan, has been convicted in a hate speech case that dates back to 2019. He was taken into custody after the hearing, while the sentencing of the SP leader will be announced soon.
A court bench in Uttar Pradesh found Azam Khan guilty of spreading hate speech when he made certain comments about Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in 2019, during the general election campaign.
The case was registered against Azam Khan at Milak Kotwali in Rampur on April 9, 2019, for allegedly making provocative remarks against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, IAS Aunjaneya Kumar Singh, and PM Modi, as per reports.
While making a provocative speech during the 2019 election campaign, the Samajwadi Party leader made certain derogatory remarks against PM Modi, alleging that he is creating an unsafe environment for the Muslim community in the country.
His speech was found to be provocative and creating religious differences, and a case was registered under sections 153a (promoting enmity between two groups), 505-1 (statement conducing to public mischief) of IPC along with sections 125 of the Representation of People Act 1951.
After the court announced their verdict of the conviction, Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan is expected to lose power as any MLA, MP, or MLC, if he is sent to prison for over two years after being convicted in a criminal case.
It must be noted that there are over 90 pending cases against Azam Khan in court, with some of the charges against him being corruption and theft. The majority of the cases filed against Azam Khan were registered after 2017 when the Bhartiya Janta Party came into power in Uttar Pradesh.
Azam Khan is considered to be the number two of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and has built a strong following in Rampur. It is expected that he will be removed from his seat in the state assembly after the sentence is announced by the court.
