The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has granted bail to Babu Khan, one of the convicts in the high-profile 2017 murder of businessman Shravan Sahu.

The order, dated June 24, 2025, was passed by a vacation bench comprising Justices Pankaj Bhatia and Chhitij Shailendra.

Babu Khan was granted bail on the principle of parity, after the Court noted that co-accused Ajay Patel had already secured bail on April 21, 2025. While granting Patel bail, the Court had observed that the prosecution failed to present any prima facie evidence establishing his involvement in the conspiracy to murder Sahu.

Khan, who was sentenced to life imprisonment by a special CBI court on August 22, 2024, had filed an appeal against his conviction. Along with the appeal, he moved a bail application which has now been allowed by the High Court.

The CBI court had convicted a total of eight individuals, including Khan, in connection with the conspiracy to murder Shravan Sahu—a case that traces its roots back to 2013.

The chain of violence began on October 16, 2013, when Shravan Sahu’s son, Ayush Sahu, got into a dispute with Aqeel Ansari, the main accused, over a beer purchase at a bar in Lucknow’s Hazratganj area. The disagreement escalated, culminating in Ayush’s murder at the hands of Aqeel and his associates. Aqeel was later convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the crime.

Unwilling to back down, Shravan Sahu pursued justice for his son and became a key witness in the prosecution’s case. Fearing a stricter sentence due to Shravan’s persistent involvement in the legal process, Aqeel allegedly conspired to eliminate him.

On February 1, 2017, Shravan Sahu was shot dead by two motorcycle-borne assailants while he sat at the counter of his oil shop at Bada Chauraha Dalmandi in Lucknow. The attackers fired multiple rounds before fleeing. Shravan was rushed to the trauma centre but was declared dead on arrival.

Shravan's younger son, Sunil Sahu, later lodged a police complaint, naming Aqeel as the mastermind behind both murders. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) subsequently took over the case, examining 51 witnesses and submitting over 100 documents during the trial.

With the High Court now granting Babu Khan bail during the pendency of his appeal, the case continues to draw attention as one of Lucknow’s most closely-watched criminal trials in recent memory.