Lucknow Feb 9 (PTI) The Allahabad High Court on Thursday directed the Balrampur district magistrate (DM) to release the movable and immovable properties of former Samajwadi Party MLA Arif Anwar Hashmi and his family.

The properties were attached on a December 4, 2020, order of the DM.

Also Read | Jammu and Kashmir: In a First, Lithium and Gold Deposits Found in the Union Territory.

A bench of justices DK Upadhyay and NK Jauhri passed the order on a petition moved by Hashmi and his family.

It warned the DM of show cause, if he failed to release the properties by February 15.

Also Read | Earthquake in Turkey: NDRF Team Rescues 6-Year-Old Girl From Debris in Gaziantep (Watch Video).

Petitioners' counsel Manoj Kumar Mishra argued that due to political vendetta, Hashmi was booked under the Gangster Act in 2020 and later, as many as 22 FIRs were lodged against him.

"Not only this, subsequently, the DM passed an order on December 4, 2020, for attaching his and his family member's movable and immovable properties. But the Gangster Act court on March 31, 2021, cancelled the DM's order. Even then the DM has not been releasing the properties," said Mishra.PTI COR SAB

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)