Allahabad HC Grants Interim Protection to Bareilly Teacher Accused of Being Pakistani
The Allahabad High Court grants interim protection from arrest to Alleged Pakistani teacher Shumaila Khan
The Allahabad High Court has granted interim protection from arrest to a Bareilly schoolteacher accused of being a Pakistani national who secured her government job using forged documents.
Court said the issue of her citizenship would be central to deciding both the criminal case lodged against her and the challenge she has filed to the cancellation of her domicile certificate.
The order was passed by a division bench of Justices Siddhartha Varma and Abdul Shahid on September 24, 2025 in a writ petition filed by Shumaila Khan.
According to the first information report (FIR), Khan, also known as Furqana, has been teaching at a primary school in Madhopur, Fatehganj block, Bareilly, since November 6, 2015. The FIR, registered on January 14 this year at Fatehganj West police station, accuses her of being a Pakistani citizen illegally residing in India and having obtained employment on the strength of a forged domicile certificate.
The case has been booked under Sections 419, 420, 467, 468, and 471 of the Indian Penal Code, covering cheating, forgery and use of forged documents. The FIR claims she produced false papers to establish herself as an Indian and secure an appointment as an assistant teacher in a government school.
Khan has moved the high court seeking quashing of the FIR and a direction that she not be arrested. She has also filed a separate writ petition challenging the cancellation of her domicile certificate. In both petitions, she has disputed the allegation that she is a Pakistani national.
The bench noted that both matters are intertwined, with the core issue being the determination of her citizenship. “Since the issue before the Court would be with regard to the citizenship of the petitioner, we provide that till the next date of listing the petitioner shall not be arrested,” the order recorded.
Court directed that her criminal writ be heard along with the domicile petition and fixed October 7, 2025, for the next hearing.
Counsel for the Union of India, Vivek Kumar Singh, was present during the proceedings, reflecting the significance of the case which involves questions beyond state jurisdiction.
The matter has seen repeated adjournments since February this year. On February 14, the state sought ten days’ time to file a counter affidavit. Hearings in March and April were adjourned on requests from the petitioner’s side. On May 5, a bench led by Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi observed that both petitions should be heard together and referred the case to the Chief Justice for appropriate orders. That direction, however, was not complied with for months, leading to further delays.
On May 30, court noted the urgency highlighted by the petitioner’s counsel but could not hear the matter on merits and directed it be listed during vacation. In July and September, the matter was again deferred due to shortage of time or procedural gaps. It was only on September 24 that the bench took up the case substantively and extended interim protection to Khan.
Case Title: Ms Shumaila Khan vs. State of UP and 3 Others
Order Date: September 24, 2025
Bench: Justices Siddhartha Varma and Abdul Shahid