The Allahabad High Court has stayed the conviction and sentence of a man convicted in a 2017 murder case after he expressed his wish to contest the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. The court granted him bail while his criminal appeal remains pending, allowing the challenge to his conviction to be heard before the High Court reaches a final decision.
A division bench of Justice Siddharth and Justice Vinai Kumar Dwivedi considered the defence’s objections to the evidence relied upon by the trial court, the delay before the appeal could be heard, and the legal principles governing the suspension of a conviction during the pendency of an appeal.
Background
The case arose from a murder reported at Sigra police station in Varanasi in 2017. According to the prosecution case, the victim was returning home from the market when unidentified assailants shot him. A sessions court convicted Rai and another accused in April 2025.
Seeking relief, Rai’s counsel argued that his client had not been named in the initial First Information Report (FIR). The defence maintained that his alleged involvement surfaced around 17 days after the FIR was lodged.
Counsel also questioned the credibility of the witness accounts and the recovery of a pistol allegedly connected with the crime. The defence argued that the conviction relied substantially on circumstantial evidence and that the circumstances did not establish an unbroken chain pointing to Rai’s guilt. The State opposed the bail application.
The bench referred to the Supreme Court’s decision in Afjal Ansari v. State of Uttar Pradesh, which discusses the circumstances in which a court may suspend a conviction. The Supreme Court’s approach requires consideration of the individual case, including the possibility of injustice or irreversible consequences if a conviction is not stayed.
The High Court noted Rai’s submission that he had been an active BJP worker before his conviction and wished to contest the next Assembly elections.
The bench observed,
“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 also recorded that the appeal, filed in 2026, was unlikely to be heard in the near future.
Allowing the application, the bench stayed Rai’s conviction and sentence during the pendency of the appeal and directed that he be released on bail upon furnishing a personal bond and two sureties to the satisfaction of the court concerned.
The court prohibited him from selling, transferring or otherwise dealing with his immovable property without its permission while on bail. It also directed him to deposit 50% of the fine within one month of his release, with the remaining amount stayed during the appeal.
The court further ordered that the appeal’s paper book be prepared within six weeks, if not already ready, and directed that the matter be listed for hearing in due course.
Case Details
- Case Title: Nandlal Rai Alias Babloo Rai v. State of U.P.
- Case Number: Criminal Appeal No. 1244 of 2026
- Judges: Justice Siddharth and Justice Vinai Kumar Dwivedi
- Decision Date: October 5, 2026
