A 75-year-old resident of Fatehpur has secured interim protection from the Allahabad High Court in a case registered under the various provisions of the SC/ST Act.
Holding that the appeal raises issues requiring examination, the Court directed that no coercive action be taken against Radha Raman Pandey till the next date of listing.
Justice Samit Gopal passed the said order while hearing Pandey’s criminal appeal. Notices have been issued to the opposite side, which has been given three weeks time to place its response on record.
Further, the appellant has been allowed a further two weeks to file a rejoinder affidavit. The case is now scheduled to come up on August 24, 2026.
According to the prosecution, Bittan Devi, wife of Ram Khelawan, alleged that accused Pandey and a group of 10 to 12 unidentified persons demolished her house during her absence and drove her daughter out of the premises.
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Acting on her complaint, police at Thariaon station in Fatehpur registered a case under Sections 323, 504 and 506 of the IPC along with Sections 3(1)(Da), 3(1)(Dha) and 3(2)(V-Ka) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
Before the High Court, counsel for the appellant Madhavendra Singh submitted that the criminal proceedings were initiated out of animosity with malafide intentions and were intended to counter action already underway against the complainant.
He told the Court that Bittan Devi had allegedly occupied PWD land situated opposite the appellant’s residence and had raised a temporary structure there.
The matter was brought to the authorities through the Jan Sunwai portal. Following an inspection and a report prepared by the amin, the encroachment was allegedly found to be genuine, after which demolition notices were served on two occasions.
The appellant maintained that the FIR was lodged only after these developments. It was also pointed out that Pandey has no criminal antecedents.
His counsel further argued that there were no eyewitnesses to the alleged incident and that the allegations themselves did not disclose any use of caste-based remarks against the complainant or her daughter, thereby making the invocation of the SC/ST Act questionable.
After hearing the parties, the Court found the matter fit for consideration and, for the time being, protected the appellant from any coercive measures pending further proceedings.
Case: Radha Raman Pandey vs State of U.P. and Another
Case No: Criminal Appeal No. – 935 of 2025
Date of Order: 16.06.2026
Status: Pending
