[Lakhimpur Kheri] Witness attacked, claims Prashant Bhushan; Supreme Court to hear appeal against Ashish Mishra bail on March 15

One of the witnesses in the Lakhimpur Kheri case in was attacked yesterday, advocate Prashant Bhushan told the Supreme Court on Friday seeking urgent listing of the appeal against bail granted to Ashish Mishra, who is the prime accused in the case. .Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana then said that it will be listed on March 15, Tuesday.The Court had earlier directed that the matter be listed today but it did not appear in the causelist. "It was to be heard today. Last night there was an attack on one of the prime witnesses of the case," said Bhushan."It is an office mistake. This will be listed on Tuesday," the CJI replied.Mishra, son of Union minister Ajay Mishra Teni, is the prime accused in the case in which a four-wheeler belonging to Mishra allegedly mowed down and killed eight persons, including farmers protesting against Farm Laws on October 3 last year at Lakhimpur Kheri..The protestors had impeded the visit of Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, who was planning to attend an event in the area. After he was arrested, the Uttar Pradesh Police's special investigation team (SIT) filed a 5,000-page chargesheet before a local court, naming Mishra as prime accused in the case. In November, a trial court had rejected his application for bail, prompting Mishra to move the High Court.Single-judge Justice Rajeev Singh of the Allahabad High Court had granted bail to Mishra on February 10, stating that there might be a possibility that the driver of the vehicle that mowed down the protesting farmers sped up the vehicle to save himself."Indubitably, no firearm injury has been found on the body of the deceased or any other person, except the injury of the hitting from the vehicle. Furthermore, in case, the story of the prosecution is accepted, thousands of protesters gathered at the place of incident and there might be a possibility that the driver tried to speed up the vehicle to save himself, on account of which, the incident had taken place," the High Court order said.The State of Uttar Pradesh did not file an appeal against the same prompting the family members of the deceased to moved the top court by way of the present appeal.