Azam Khan remanded to 14-day judicial custody following ED arrest

Senior Samajwadi Party leader and former Uttar Pradesh minister Mohammad Azam Khan was remanded to 14 days of judicial custody by a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act court in Ghaziabad on Sunday. The remand order was issued by Special Judge Avanish Kumar Pandey following a hearing.

The development follows his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate on Saturday evening, minutes after he walked out of Rampur District Jail following an 11-month incarceration. Instead of being returned to Rampur, the veteran politician was shifted under heavy security to Dasna District Jail in Ghaziabad, where he will remain lodged.

The federal financial investigation agency produced the former Member of Parliament before the court at approximately 10.30 am. A convoy of five agency vehicles carrying the leader arrived at the premises accompanied by more than 100 personnel from the Central Reserve Police Force and the Uttar Pradesh Police.

During the proceedings, agency counsel Kuldeep Srivastava pressed for custodial interrogation, arguing that questioning was required to map out financial transactions, trace property transfers, and establish the money trail linked to the case. Defence counsel Danish Ali opposed the remand, submitting that statutory provisions under the anti-money laundering legislation had been violated.

The investigation stems from a series of 26 First Information Reports registered by state police in July 2019 at the Azeem Nagar station in Rampur. Investigators allege that agricultural land belonging to farmers in Singankhera village was forcibly occupied through coercion, assault, and unlawful confinement to expand the campus of the Mohammad Ali Jauhar University, managed by the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust.

According to agency submissions, public funds and materials meant for state development works were allegedly diverted to the private campus, and contractor funds were routed back to the trust as donations. On October 28, the agency provisionally attached land and buildings belonging to the university under anti-money laundering laws, noting an original book value of ₹426.46 crore and an estimated current market value of roughly ₹1,170 crore.

Prior to his production in court, the former minister was taken to the federal agency's headquarters in New Delhi for questioning. He briefly complained of chest and stomach discomfort, prompting a medical checkup by a team of doctors at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital before being cleared for further questioning.

The high-profile arrest triggered political reactions from opposition circles. Samajwadi Party representatives asserted that the renewed legal action was politically motivated, contending that successive cases are deployed when existing detentions near resolution. The court directed prison authorities to ensure necessary medical attention is administered during his custody period.