Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan was remanded to 14 days of judicial custody by a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Ghaziabad on Sunday, November 1. He will be lodged in Dasna District Jail in Ghaziabad instead of Rampur jail, from where he had been released barely a day earlier, and he is to be produced before the court again on November 13, 2026.
The order came a day after Khan was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate minutes after walking out of Rampur jail on bail in a separate case. Sunday’s hearing, not Saturday’s arrest, is what decided where he will spend the next two weeks — in judicial custody, under the jail authorities, rather than in the custody of the investigating agency.
What happened in court on Sunday
The Enforcement Directorate produced Khan before Special Judge Avanish Kumar Pandey of the Anti-Corruption CBI court at around 10:30 am amid tight security. A convoy of five ED vehicles brought him to the court premises, accompanied by more than 100 personnel from the Central Reserve Police Force and the Uttar Pradesh Police.
Khan arrived in a multi-utility vehicle and appeared calm, according to the reports. When journalists asked whether he wanted to say something as he rolled down the window, he replied, “Ab kya reh gaya hai bolne ko” — “What is left to say now?”
The court heard the matter for about 90 minutes. ED counsel Kuldeep Srivastava argued for the agency, while ED Deputy Director Piyush Thorat and Assistant Director Praveen Kumar were present in the courtroom. Khan’s lawyers opposed the agency’s remand plea. The court then ordered 14 days of judicial custody.
In its order, the court observed that the gravity of the allegations, the magnitude of the alleged proceeds of crime, and the need for a fair probe into the money trail and related evidence warranted judicial custody, ED counsel Srivastava told the Times of India. The court also directed the Superintendent of District Jail, Ghaziabad, to ensure that Khan receives all necessary medical care in accordance with prison rules and that the medicines prescribed to him are made available during his incarceration.
Judicial custody is not ED custody
The distinction matters for what happens next. Judicial custody means Khan remains in jail while the investigation continues; he is not handed over to the Enforcement Directorate for interrogation in its custody. The agency had sought custody for questioning him over the alleged money laundering and financial irregularities involving the university and the trust, but the court’s order placed him in judicial custody for the same 14-day period.
In practical terms, that means his immediate future is decided by the jail and the court, not by the investigating agency’s questioning schedule. Any further interrogation would need the court’s permission, and the next formal checkpoint is already fixed: his production before the court on November 13.
At Dasna jail, the superintendent, Sitaram Sharma, had earlier said the same rules apply to all first-time inmates, whether they arrive on a Sunday or a regular working day, and that new inmates are initially allotted a general barrack in accordance with prison procedures.
The night between release and the hearing
Between Saturday evening’s arrest and Sunday morning’s hearing, Khan was taken to the Enforcement Directorate’s headquarters in Delhi for questioning. He later complained of chest and stomach pain, after which a team of CRPF and ED personnel took him to RML Hospital in Delhi for a medical examination. After clearance from a specialist team of doctors there, he was brought back to the ED headquarters and questioned again.
Officials said he was questioned at length about the alleged misuse of government funds in the construction of Mohammad Ali Jauhar University in Rampur, with the agency reportedly putting more than 50 questions to him. That overnight questioning is part of the investigation record; it does not change the character of Sunday’s order, which is judicial custody.
Two cases, and why release did not end the matter
Saturday’s brief freedom and Sunday’s custody order belong to two separate legal tracks, and confusing them is the easiest way to misunderstand this story.
Khan and his son, Abdullah Azam Khan, had walked out of Rampur jail at around 7:15 pm on Saturday after spending nearly 11 months in custody. Their release followed an Allahabad High Court order on October 29 that suspended their 10-year sentence in the two PAN card cases and granted them bail. Abdullah went home; his father was taken into ED custody outside the jail in the separate money-laundering case.
The money-laundering case was registered by the agency in 2019. According to ED sources cited in the custody reporting, 26 cases were registered against Khan in 2019, after which the agency lodged ECIR/07/LKZO/2019 on August 1, 2019, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. Bail in the PAN card matter therefore did not block the ED’s separate action, just as it did not end the money-laundering investigation.
What the ED alleges
The agency alleges that Khan illegally occupied farmers’ land to establish the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust and the Mohammad Ali Jauhar University in Rampur, and that illegal collections were made from contractors and others during the construction of the university, generating alleged proceeds of crime worth about Rs 426 crore. It is also investigating alleged financial irregularities in the construction of the university, the purchase of land for it, and the sources of funds used for these activities.
Earlier in the investigation, the agency provisionally attached the land and buildings of the university, with a book value of about Rs 426 crore and an estimated current market value of about Rs 1,170 crore, according to the ED’s figures. These are the agency’s allegations in an ongoing investigation. No court has delivered a verdict in the money-laundering case, and Khan has not been found guilty in it.
Political reactions
The developments drew sharply different reactions. Samajwadi Party national general secretary Shivpal Singh Yadav criticised the government, alleging that the ED had acted at its behest to arrest Khan immediately after his release from jail, and called upon people to speak out against what he described as oppressive governments.
BJP leaders defended the ED’s action, maintaining that the law was equal for everyone. Uttar Pradesh Energy Minister AK Sharma said the law applies equally to everyone, irrespective of position or identity, and remarked that people sometimes disregard the law when consumed by the arrogance of power, but eventually everyone has to face its consequences. Bihar BJP president Sanjay Saraogi said the case should not be linked to any particular community and accused Khan of attempting to portray himself as a victim.
Why it matters
The custody order keeps a senior opposition figure in jail through the immediate run-up to a politically charged period in Uttar Pradesh, with Assembly elections due early next year. For the Samajwadi Party, Khan’s return to custody within a day of his release is a ready-made argument about the use of central agencies against opposition leaders. For the government and the agencies, the same sequence is presented as an ordinary step in a financial investigation with a long paper trail.
It also matters for the university at the centre of the case. The attachment of its land and buildings raises questions about the institution’s future whatever the courts ultimately decide about the money trail, and the November 13 hearing will be the first public test of how the court views the agency’s case at this stage.
What happens next
The next fixed date is November 13, 2026, when Khan is to be produced before the Ghaziabad court again. Before that, the ED’s investigation continues, and Khan’s lawyers are expected to challenge both the arrest and the attachment of the university’s properties. The PAN card case remains separate: the Allahabad High Court suspended the sentences but did not stay the convictions, so that matter is not closed either.
Timeline
- August 1, 2019: The ED lodges ECIR/07/LKZO/2019 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, following cases registered against Khan that year.
- November 17, 2025: Khan is lodged in Rampur jail, beginning a spell of nearly 11 months in custody.
- October 28, 2026: The ED provisionally attaches Mohammad Ali Jauhar University land and buildings.
- October 29, 2026: The Allahabad High Court suspends Khan’s and Abdullah Azam Khan’s 10-year sentence in the two PAN card cases and grants bail.
- October 31, 2026, around 7:15 pm: Khan and Abdullah walk out of Rampur jail; minutes later, the ED arrests Khan outside the jail in the money-laundering case.
- October 31, 2026, night: Khan is questioned at the ED headquarters in Delhi, taken to RML Hospital after complaining of chest and stomach pain, cleared by specialists, and questioned again.
- November 1, 2026, around 10:30 am: Khan is produced before Special Judge Avanish Kumar Pandey in Ghaziabad amid heavy security.
- November 1, 2026, after a 90-minute hearing: The court remands Khan to 14 days of judicial custody in Dasna District Jail, with directions on medical care.
- November 13, 2026: Khan is to be produced before the court again.
Frequently asked questions
Where will Azam Khan be held during judicial custody?
In Dasna District Jail in Ghaziabad, not in Rampur jail, where he had been lodged before his release on October 31.
How long is the judicial custody?
Fourteen days, ordered on November 1, 2026, with his next production before the Ghaziabad court fixed for November 13, 2026.
Is judicial custody the same as ED custody?
No. Judicial custody means he remains in jail under the jail authorities while the investigation continues. ED custody would mean being handed over to the agency for interrogation. The court ordered judicial custody.
Why was he arrested again so soon after his release?
Because the release and the arrest relate to two different cases. He was released on bail after the Allahabad High Court suspended his sentence in the two PAN card cases. The ED then arrested him in a separate money-laundering case linked to Mohammad Ali Jauhar University.
What does the ED allege in the money-laundering case?
The agency alleges financial irregularities involving the university and its trust, including the alleged misuse of government funds in the university’s construction and the alleged illegal occupation of farmers’ land, generating alleged proceeds of crime worth about Rs 426 crore. These are allegations under investigation, not a court verdict.
What did Azam Khan say when he arrived at the Ghaziabad court?
When journalists asked whether he wanted to say something, he replied, “Ab kya reh gaya hai bolne ko” — “What is left to say now?” — according to the reports.
What happens on November 13?
Khan is to be produced before the Ghaziabad court again. The court will then decide the next step, which could include extending custody, granting bail, or fixing further hearing dates.
Related coverage
Read more in the World section, including the earlier report on how Khan was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate minutes after walking out of Rampur jail, which sets out the two cases and the university attachment in full.