Uttar Pradesh Gangsters Act case: Supreme Court makes interim bail absolute for MLA Abbas Ansari

The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday (January 13, 2026) made the interim bail granted to former Uttar Pradesh MLA Abbas Ansari absolute in a case against him under the Gangsters Act.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant directed him to inform the police before leaving the State.

In March last year, the Supreme Court had granted interim bail to Ansari in Gangsters Act case while directing him to stay in his official accommodation in Lucknow. The court had also barred the former MLA from making any public statements in respect of cases concerning him which are currently sub-judice before different courts. He is facing multiple criminal cases.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal and advocate Nizam Pasha, appearing for Ansari, had said he would be booked in an FIR by the time he got bail in an earlier case. Mr. Sibal had said his client was already on bail in other cases but had to continue in custody owing to the instant case.

Additional Solicitor General K.M. Nataraj, appearing for the State, had countered that bail in other cases was not a ground to grant bail in this one. “Every case had to be considered on its own individual merits,” he argued.

This particular case was registered in Chitrakoot district on August 31, 2025, under the provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986. Abbas Ansari was taken into custody on September 6, 2024.