HC quashes Gangsters Act case against ex-SP MP, kin

Lucknow: Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has granted major relief to former Samajwadi Party MP Rizwan Zaheer and his son-in-law Rameez Nemat by quashing the proceedings initiated against them under the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act.Delivering the judgment, Justice Subhash Vidyarthi held that police and administrative authorities had failed to satisfy the statutory requirements necessary for invoking the Gangsters Act. The court observed that the material available on record did not establish that the alleged activities of the accused had disturbed public order or were committed with the objective of obtaining undue pecuniary or other material benefits.The order came on an application filed by Rizwan Zaheer and Rameez Nemat under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). The HC had reserved its verdict on May 26 and pronounced the judgment on May 29.The case arose from an FIR registered at Tulsipur police station in Balrampur district under the Gangsters Act. Police had prepared a gang chart describing Rameez Nemat as the gang leader and Rizwan Zaheer as a member. The gang chart was based on two criminal cases — a 2022 case involving allegations of attempt to murder and a 2023 murder case. On this basis, an FIR under the Gangsters Act was lodged and a charge sheet was subsequently filed.Appearing for the petitioners, senior advocate BA Khan argued that the station house officer had prepared the gang chart on July 7, 2024, whereas the FIR claimed that he first learned about the existence of the alleged gang during police patrolling on July 20, 2024. The HC found this contradiction significant and observed that the narrative in the FIR appeared inherently improbable, indicating mala fide action on the part of the police.Earlier, opposing the plea, additional government advocate GD Bhatt had contended that the accused wielded such influence and terror in the area that people were reluctant to come forward and lodge complaints against them, and that all procedural requirements under the Gangsters Act had been duly followed.However, the court held that there was no material on record to show that the alleged acts had affected public tranquillity or disrupted the normal life of the community. It further noted that no substantive material had been produced to establish that the murder case cited in the gang chart was committed for any pecuniary gain.The court also found that the investigating officer, superintendent of police, district magistrate and the trial court had proceeded mechanically without recording the satisfaction required under the Act and the 2021 Rules. Consequently, the bench quashed the charge sheet, the cognizance order and the summoning order passed by the special judge, bringing the Gangsters Act proceedings against Rizwan Zaheer and Rameez Nemat to an end.