The Allahabad High Court has stayed the conviction and life sentence of a man convicted in a 2017 murder case, allowing him to seek electoral office as he prepares to contest the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.
A division bench of Justices Siddhartha and Vinay Kumar Dwivedi granted relief to Nandlal Rai, also known as Babloo Rai, while hearing his appeal against his conviction by a Varanasi sessions court in April 2025.
Rai’s counsel told the court that he wanted to contest the upcoming Assembly elections as an independent candidate or, if possible, on a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket. He had been an active BJP worker before his conviction.
“Keeping in view the right to livelihood of a common man, which is not less important than the right to contest election by a politician, conviction and sentence of appellant deserves to be stayed so that he may be able to survive for hearing the final verdict in his above noted appeal,” the court observed.
Court Refers to Supreme Court Ruling
In its October 5 order, the High Court referred to the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Afjal Ansari v. State of Uttar Pradesh, which dealt with the suspension of convictions of elected representatives.
The High Court noted that the Supreme Court had recognised that a conviction could prevent politicians from contesting elections, potentially resulting in consequences that could not easily be reversed.
The bench also referred to the legal principle that suspension of a conviction must be considered in light of the specific facts and circumstances of a case, particularly when refusing relief could lead to irreversible consequences.
The court granted Rai bail and stayed his conviction and sentence while his appeal remains pending.
Defence Challenges Evidence in Murder Case
The case concerns the 2017 murder of Pramod Kumar Nigam, an active member of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. The case was registered at Sigra police station in Varanasi.
Rai’s counsel argued that his client had not been named in the first information report (FIR) and that his alleged involvement emerged around 17 days after the FIR was registered.
The defence also questioned the prosecution’s reliance on circumstantial evidence, the credibility of eyewitness testimony and the recovery of the alleged murder weapon.
His lawyer argued that Rai had been implicated on the basis of suspicion and conjecture, claiming that the chain of circumstances supporting the conviction was incomplete.
Media reports have linked Rai to gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari. The prosecution case concerned Nigam’s murder, which Rai’s defence challenged during the appeal.
The state opposed the bail application. However, according to reports on the court proceedings, the Additional Government Advocate did not dispute the submissions made by Rai’s counsel.
Conditions Attached to Bail
Along with granting bail and staying the conviction and sentence, the High Court imposed several conditions on Rai.
He must furnish a personal bond and two sureties of the same amount to the satisfaction of the court concerned. He has also been directed not to sell, transfer or otherwise alienate any immovable property in his name, or create a charge over it, without the court’s permission.
The court further ordered Rai to deposit 50 per cent of the fine within one month of his release from jail. The remaining half of the fine will remain stayed while the appeal is pending.
The bench directed that the appeal’s paper book be prepared within six weeks, if it had not already been completed, and ordered that the matter be listed for hearing in due course.
