Chitrakoot jail incident: HC rejects bail of Abbas Ansari

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court rejected the bail application of Abbas Ansari, MLA from Mau (Sadar) assembly constituency, on Wednesday. The case related to Ansari illegally meeting his wife in the Chitkakoot jail.

A single judge bench of justice Jaspreet Singh passed the order on an application moved by Ansari.

“We apprised the court about the entire sequence of events that unfolded in Chitrakoot prison. When a person can influence jail authorities then he can also influence witnesses in the case after coming out on bail,” said advocate Vinod Kumar Shahi, additional advocate general, who represented the state government in court.

Abbas Ansari used to meet his wife Nikhat in the office of the prison superintendent of Chitrakoot jail illegally. The meeting used to last for several hours.

The issue came to light in a sudden raid carried out by senior officials of Chitrakoot, including district magistrate on February 11, 2023.

Nikhat Ansari was arrested during the raid from the VVIP guest room adjacent to the jailor’s office inside the Chitrakoot jail.

During investigation, it was discovered that Nikhat Ansari used to meet Abbas for three-four hours every second or third day in Chitrakoot jail and her visit was facilitated by local jail authorities.

Her visits were not even logged into the jail register.

Abbas Ansari was shifted from the Chitrakoot prison to Kasganj district jail in February 2023 after the incident.

Seven persons were arrested in the case, including Nikhat Ansari.

The Supreme Court had granted bail to Nikhat Ansari on August 11, 2023.