A COURT in Hathras on Tuesday acquitted former MLA Devendra Agarwal and 15 others in connection with a case registered over a clash that took place in 2017 between supporters of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) at Manikpur village of the district in which a 30-year-old man was killed and three others were injured. The incident occurred in February during the 2017 Assembly election period in which Devendra Agarwal contested on a Samajwadi Party ticket from Sadabad constituency. The deceased, Pushpendra Sharma, was a BSP supporter. “The court acquitted all 16 accused on benefit of doubt. A total of 16 prosecution witnesses and one defence witnesses were examined by the court. No prosecution witness was declared hostile. We will file an appeal against the judgment in the Allahabad High Court,” said district government counsel, Hathras, Sivendra Chauhan. All the accused, including Devendra Agarwal were out on bail. The court found that the case was linked to political rivalry, he added. Devendra Agarwal had won the 2012 Assembly election on Samajwadi party ticket from Sadabad seat in Hathras. According to the prosecution, the case dates back to February 8, 2017, when supporters of SP and BSP clashed at the Manikpur village falling in the Sadabad Assembly constituency. The two groups raised slogans against each other. This eventually led to a scuffle that turned violent, with some people in the crowd opening fire. A bullet hit Pushpendra Sharma, causing his death on the spot. Three others were injured in the clash. The father of the deceased, Hari Ram Sharma, registered a case on murder charges at the Sehpau police station. The police investigated and filed chargesheet against 17 persons including Devendra Agarwal. One of the accused died during the course of the trial. Devendra Agarwal lost the 2017 election to BSP's Ramveer Upadhyay. Devendra Agarwal contested the 2022 Assembly election from Mathura and lost. When contacted, Devendra Agarwal said on Tuesday, “it was a false case. Four of my family members were also booked. The court has now declared us innocent.”
