Prayagraj (UP), Mar 12 The Allahabad High Court has declined to quash a bunch of FIRs in the September 2025 Bareilly violence case, saying it does not find this to be a fit case.
The court also vacated the interim stay order of November 24, 2025 by which it had stayed the arrest of some of the accused in the clashes broke out between police and a large crowd that gathered outside a mosque after Friday prayers on September 26.
The bench comprising justices J J Munir and Vinai Kumar Dwivedi dismissed the bunch of petitions on March 9 filed by Ashu and several others.
The plea was that earlier an FIR in the same incident was lodged by a sub inspector and later on, the present FIR was lodged. As the present FIR was the second FIR of the same incident, hence it was liable to be quashed.
The court on this said, "The said FIR, though related to the same incident no doubt, but it does not report the generality of the incident and all that the unlawful assembly did. It reports only one facet of it, where the unlawful assembly throwing brickbats, where the informant was on duty, snatched a policemen' baton and attempted to tear of his uniform. It is a very small part of the incident, which the impugned (present) FIR reports in wholesome detail."
"Therefore, on the foot of the FIR, giving rise to Crime No. 1145 of 2025, it cannot be said that the impugned FIR is a second FIR relating to the same incident," the bench added.
The court while dismissing the petitions said, "In the totality of circumstances, we do not find this to be a fit case, where we can quash the impugned FIR at the instance of any of the petitioners, who have preferred the present writ petition and the connected writ petitions.
"Petitioner who was an accused in the violence case and was named in the FIR had sought quashing of the FIR lodged in Bareilly violence case."
During the September 26 violence, Maulana Tauqeer Raza's supporters raised provocative slogans and hurled petrol bombs and stones at officers after permission for their protest was denied.
The Bareilly administration had imposed prohibitory orders under BNSS Section 163, citing the ongoing Navratri and Urs festivities.
Raza allegedly released a video challenging the government's restrictions, warning of "dire consequences" if the protest was blocked.
When the police intervened, violence spread rapidly from Khalil Tiraha to Naumahalla Mosque, Kotwali, SP City Office, Novelty Chauraha, Azamnagar, and Shyamganj areas.
Ashu v. State of U.P., (Allahabad)(DB) : Law Finder Doc Id # 2865414
