Senior Samajwadi Party leader and former Uttar Pradesh Cabinet minister Azam Khan was released on Tuesday from Sitapur jail after almost two years of incarceration. Dressed in his trademark white kurta-pyjama with a black waistcoat, Khan quietly left the premises in a private vehicle without speaking to the large number of reporters waiting outside. His elder son Adeeb, along with hundreds of party workers and leaders including Anup Gupta, Ruchi Vira, and Chatrapati Yadav, gathered outside the jail to give him a grand welcome. The district administration had imposed prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) to maintain law and order, but despite restrictions, a heavy crowd of supporters reached near the jail, leading to traffic chaos.

Calling the release a “victory of justice,” Samajwadi Party leaders celebrated the moment, saying that no politician in recent times had faced as much harassment as Azam Khan. His son Adeeb described him as “the hero of the day,” while party MP Ruchi Vira reaffirmed faith in the judiciary. Local police, however, had to issue challans against several vehicles that gathered in violation of prohibitory orders. Authorities noted that the rush of supporters despite restrictions had caused congestion and chaos around the jail premises.

Reacting to Khan’s release, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said that all “false” cases against him would be withdrawn once the party comes to power in Uttar Pradesh. He highlighted Khan’s role as a founder member of the party and an important figure in the socialist movement. Yadav alleged that the BJP government had earlier withdrawn criminal cases against its own leaders, including Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and promised that his party would do the same for Khan and others. He further assured that even journalists targeted with fabricated cases would receive relief under a Samajwadi Party government.