ED takes Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan into custody after jail release
The Enforcement Directorate detained Azam Khan in Rampur following his release from prison on bail in a PAN card case.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) took Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan into custody on Saturday, shortly after he walked out of Rampur district jail. According to reports from The New Indian Express and Free Press Journal, the detention occurred following his release on bail in a dual PAN card case. While Khan was taken into custody, his son Abdullah Azam was allowed to go home.
The ED team arrived at the jail premises approximately 15 minutes before the scheduled release. The agency intercepted Khan around 7 pm as he stepped out of the prison gate. Rampur Additional Superintendent of Police Anil Singh Sisodia confirmed that the ED team took Khan into custody to take him to its headquarters in Ghaziabad for questioning.
The detention is linked to a money laundering probe involving the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust and Mohammad Ali Jauhar University. The ED registered an FIR on October 14 following questioning regarding an alleged unexplained expenditure of Rs 416.14 crore on the university's construction. An Income Tax Department valuation report from November 10, 2023, estimated the campus buildings at Rs 494.46 crore, while tax returns disclosed capital expenditure of only Rs 78.32 crore.
Khan told reporters that he was being punished for being a Muslim and for building the university and schools. His legal team, including Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal, termed the action unconstitutional. Samajwadi Party spokesperson Abbas Haider alleged the government is attempting to implicate Khan through central agencies.