Mukhtar Ansari moves SC for hearing of bail plea

New Delhi, Aug 19 (UNI) Don-turned-independent MLA Mukhtar Ansari, arrested in the BJP MLA Krishnanad Rai murder case, today moved the Supreme Court, seeking directions to the trial court at Ghazipur to hear and decide on merits his bail application pending there.

A Bench comprising Justice C K Thakkar and Justice D K Jain directed Ansari to mention his petition for an urgent hearing before a Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan next week.

The apex court had stayed the proceedings in the murder case on a petition filed by the CBI, seeking a transfer of the case outside Uttar Pradesh.

In April this year, the Supreme Court, while staying the proceedings of the trial on another petition filed by a relative of the deceased, had directed that the bail application of Ansari would be heard and disposed of on merits.

The trial court at Ghazipur had, however, refused to hear the bail application in view of the latest stay order granted by the apex court on the CBI's petition.

Rai was murdered in November 2005 and Afzal Ansari, an MP from Ghazipur, and his brother and MLA Ansari are the prime suspects in the case. Both are at present in jail.

The CBI contended in its transfer petition that two prosecution witnesses have already been killed and a free and fair trial is not possible in Ghazipur as no witness is prepared to depose against the two brothers in view of their terror and political clout.

UNI SC AKJ DS1455