Madhya Pradesh: Muslim judge receives death threats after convicting seven men in lynching case

A Muslim judge in Madhya Pradesh’s Narmadapuram district has received death threats and faced communal abuse after she sentenced seven men to life imprisonment in a 2022 case where a truck driver was assaulted by a group that claimed he was a cattle smuggler, Bar and Bench reported on Wednesday.

On June 12, Additional District and Sessions Judge Tabassum Khan sentenced seven men for killing truck driver Sheikh Lala Nazir Ahmed in Barakhar village of Seoni Malwa tehsil.

Soon after, videos containing death threats and communal slurs were shared on social media, Bar and Bench reported. Videos also showed effigies of the judge being burnt in some of the protests.

On June 23, the police registered a first information report against unidentified persons under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita pertaining to promoting enmity and using words to deliberately hurt religious feelings, Newslaundry reported.

Narmadapuram Additional Superintendent of Police Abhishek Ranjan told The Indian Express that the judge’s security has been increased while the investigation is underway.

“The accused are yet to be identified,” Ranjan was quoted as saying. “We are taking the help of various units to track down those behind the social media posts.”

Congress leader Vivek Tankha condemned the abuse faced by Khan and said the “silence of the higher judiciary and the government” was “more shocking” than the hate campaign itself, Bar and Bench reported.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court Advocates on Record Association issued a statement saying that it “unequivocally condemns the threats and targeted social media campaign” against Khan.

“Judicial orders are to be challenged before appellate courts, not through intimidation, vilification or threats against judges,” the association said. “Such conduct strikes at the very foundation of judicial independence and the rule of law.”

It added: “If judges are made to fear personal consequences for decisions rendered in accordance with law, it can have a serious negative impact on the independence and functioning of the district courts.”

The case

On August 2, 2022, Nazir Ahmed and two others were transporting cattle from Nandarwada village to Maharashtra when their vehicle was intercepted near Barakhad by a mob armed with sticks and wooden rods, Bar and Bench quoted the prosecution as saying.

Ahmed later died of his injuries, while the two others survived.

In her judgement, Khan held that the prosecution had proved the charges beyond reasonable doubt.

Despite the two surviving occupants turning hostile during the trial, the court relied on medical and forensic evidence, along with the recovery of blood-stained weapons and clothing, Bar and Bench reported.

Edited by Tanya Shrivastava.