PRAYAGRAJ, Aug. 21 -- The Allahabad high court on Wednesday stayed the conviction of Abbas Ansari, son of the late gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, in a 2022 hate speech case.

Justice Sameer Jain stayed the May 31 order of the MP-MLA court, Mau, which had convicted Abbas under sections 153-A (promoting enmity between groups) and 189 (threatening a public servant) of the IPC and sentenced him to two years' rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of Rs.2,000. Following the conviction, Abbas had lost his membership of the UP assembly.

Now, according to his counsel, advocate Upendra Upadhyay, the high court's order staying the conviction will restore Abbas Ansari's assembly membership. He was elected from the Mau constituency on a...