Ashish Mishra allegedly distributed tricycles at an event in Uttar Pradesh even though the court only allowed him to enter the state to attend trial proceedings. The court, which is hearing his bail plea, granted the interim bail in January 2023. It has since been extended from time to time.

A bench of justices Surya Kant and PS Narasimha observed if Ashish Mishra physically attended the event, it was a violation of the bail order while allowing Bhushan, who appeared for families of the farmers, to file the relevant material.

Bhushan wondered how could Ashish Mishra participate in the event and distribute tricycles. “I will file an affidavit in this regard and show how the order of this court is being violated,” said Bhushan, citing a video purportedly showing Ashish Mishra’s presence at the event.

The court did not pass any order but orally said: “You [Bhushan] can file your affidavit. We are not mentioning it in our order.”

Senior advocate Siddharth Dave, who appeared for Ashish Mishra, said his client cannot be that foolish to do anything to violate his liberty. He referred to Bhushan’s claim of the video evidence and said, “There is a huge difference between what is stated across the bar and what is stated on paper.”

The Supreme Court directed expeditious trial in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case and periodic reports while granting Ashish Mishra interim bail. In the latest report submitted on March 20, the presiding officer of the trial court said certain witnesses were not turning up for the trial and little was being done to ensure their appearance.

The Supreme Court said it seems the public prosecutor and local police need to take some effective steps to ensure the presence of witnesses so that the time of the trial court is not wasted. It directed the Supreme Court registry to provide the presiding judge’s report to Uttar Pradesh’s additional advocate-general Garima Parsad for action.