LUCKNOW: In a dramatic development, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested senior Samajwadi Party leader and former MP Azam Khan outside Rampur district jail on Saturday, moments after he walked out following nearly 11 months in custody. His son, Abdullah Azam, was released and went home.ED officials questioned Khan outside the jail before taking him away in a vehicle.Sources in the agency said he had been arrested in connection with a 2019 Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) registered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). He is likely to be produced before a court in Ghaziabad, sources said.As ED officials questioned him, Khan reportedly had a heated exchange with them. Reacting emotionally to his arrest, he said, “What more can I say now? This is the punishment for being a Muslim. The mistake is that a Muslim built a university. That is our crime.”The ED team had reached Rampur jail before Khan’s release. Around 24 CRPF personnel were also deployed outside the prison as the agency prepared to take him into custody. The arrest came amid a large gathering of Khan’s supporters, who had assembled outside the jail to welcome him after his release.Khan and Abdullah had walked out of prison after the Allahabad High Court granted them bail and suspended their sentences in the dual PAN card case.The court passed the order on October 29, but declined to stay their convictions. Consequently, their disqualification from contesting elections remains in force.Rampur jail superintendent Rajesh Yadav had confirmed their release to TOI, saying the jail authorities had received release orders in 50 cases involving Azam Khan and 40 cases involving Abdullah.While Abdullah left for home, Khan was taken into custody by the ED in the separate money-laundering case. The agency’s 2019 ECIR relates to allegations of financial irregularities and land-grabbing, including matters linked to the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust and the university established by it.Khan had been lodged in Rampur jail since November 17, 2025. His release on Saturday, therefore, lasted only briefly before the ED took him into custody in the separate case.
