SC issues notice to UP Govt on pleas of Azam Khan's wife, son

The Supreme Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to respond to separate petitions filed by Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan's wife, Tazeen Fatma, and their son, Abdullah Azam Khan, who are seeking suspension of their conviction in the alleged forged birth certificate case.

- CORRESPONDENT

A bench led by Chief Justice B R Gavai, along with Justices Satish Chandra Sharma and K Vinod Chandran, issued notice on the pleas and posed a key question to their counsel, advocate Nizam Pasha:

"The stay of conviction has to be done in rare cases. Suspension of sentence is usually done," remarked the CJI.

Fatma and Abdullah moved the Supreme Court after the Allahabad High Court declined to stay their conviction in October 2023. While the high court had suspended the sentence awarded by a Rampur trial court, it refused to interfere with the conviction.