In a major setback for the Samajwadi Party, senior leader Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam were convicted and handed seven-year jail terms on Monday by a special MP-MLA court in Rampur. The father-son duo has once again been sent to judicial custody just weeks after Azam walked free from Sitapur Jail.
The 2019 Forgery Scandal That Triggered the Case
The conviction relates to a 2019 complaint filed by BJP leader Akash Saxena, who accused Abdullah Azam of possessing two PAN cards with different birth dates – one showing 30 September 1990 and the other 1 January 1993. Prosecutors successfully argued that Azam Khan masterminded the forgery to make his son eligible to contest the 2017 Swar Assembly election by artificially inflating his age from 24 to 27. Evidence included bank records, income tax documents, and contradictory affidavits submitted during the polls.
Court Finds Both Guilty on Multiple Charges
After an exhaustive trial, the special court found Azam Khan and Abdullah guilty under several IPC sections, including 120B (criminal conspiracy), 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for cheating), and 471 (using forged documents as genuine). Both were sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment and taken into custody immediately after the verdict.
Political Reactions and Next Steps
The Samajwadi Party has termed the verdict “pure political vendetta” orchestrated by the BJP to weaken its influence in Rampur, vowing to challenge the decision in higher courts. Akash Saxena, present in court, hailed the ruling as a victory for electoral integrity. With appeals already in motion, the legal battle is far from over.
