Samajwadi Party veteran Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam were sentenced to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment by a Special MP-MLA Magistrate Court in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, in the 2019 dual PAN card forgery case, marking yet another chapter in the long-running legal odyssey of the 76-year-old leader who has faced over 80 cases since the 2022 assembly elections. The conviction stems from allegations by BJP leader Akash Saxena that the duo possessed multiple PAN cards with fabricated documents and inconsistent birth dates, used for banking and income tax filings, filed at Civil Lines Police Station in December 2019 amid heightened political rivalry in western UP.
Case Background: Forgery Allegations and Legal Trajectory
The FIR accused Khan and Abdullah of submitting falsified documents to obtain duplicate PAN cards, violating IT Act provisions, with investigations revealing discrepancies in dates of birth across cards used for financial transactions. This comes months after Khan’s release on bail in September 2024 following nearly 23 months in Rampur jail across multiple cases; he was recently acquitted in a 2014 matter involving alleged misuse of ministerial letterhead and seal to issue defamatory statements against BJP and RSS, with the Lucknow court citing insufficient evidence: “Charges against Azam Khan not proven beyond doubt.”
Court Proceedings and Immediate Aftermath
The special court, presided over by Magistrate Rajesh Kumar, convicted the duo after examining documentary evidence and witness testimonies, imposing fines alongside imprisonment. Khan’s lawyer, Firoz Khan, filed a petition seeking joint custody in Rampur jail for father and son, with the decision pending; the family expressed resolve to appeal in higher courts. Khan, from Rampur (a SP stronghold), recently met party chief Akhilesh Yadav, describing their bond as familial and sharpening attacks on the Yogi Adityanath government: “Law has vanished; only order prevails.”
Political Ramifications: SP Resilience Amid Legal Onslaught
This verdict intensifies scrutiny on Khan, a key SP strategist in Muslim-dominated western UP, whose legal battles—stemming from 2022 poll violence cases—have tested party unity but not dimmed his influence. Acquittal in the letterhead case bolstered morale, and Akhilesh’s support signals consolidation ahead of 2027 assembly polls, where SP eyes anti-incumbency.
Broader Context: UP’s Political-Legal Nexus
Khan’s saga highlights UP’s charged atmosphere, where opposition leaders face myriad probes under stringent laws, raising questions on judicial independence and electoral equity. As appeals loom, this ruling could galvanize SP’s base or fuel narratives of vendetta.