Delhi's special NIA court on Tuesday granted interim bail to parliamentarian Rashid Engineer in connection with a terror funding case. The interim bail has been granted till October 2, 2024, by the court, which directed him to surrender on October 3 before the concerned jail. By the order, the court allow him to campaign for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections.
Rashid Engineer had filed a bail application requesting interim bail for three months, while his regular bail application remains pending before the same court, with an order expected on September 11.
His counsel, Vikhyat Oberoi, argued that the interim bail is needed for campaigning in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections and to fulfil his duties as a parliamentarian.
Recently, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had opposed regular bail plea of Rashid Engineer in the UAPA case and stated that Rashid Engineer, as a Member of Parliament, may misuse his position to influence witnesses and obstruct justice if granted bail.
The agency said a confidential report indicating that Engineer previously misused the telephone facilities in Central Jail, Tihar, leading to restrictions on his call privileges. The NIA fears he might misuse his liberty similarly if released on bail. The NIA claims Engineer defended the 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed's terror activities as a 'political cause,' suggesting a troubling alignment with extremist narratives.
The NIA asserts that Engineer is involved in a strategy by Pakistani and secessionist groups to portray terrorist acts as political struggles, aiming to incite separatism in Jammu and Kashmir and given these concerns, the NIA urged the Patiala House Court of Delhi to reject Engineer's bail application.
Delhi's Patiala House Court on Wednesday reserved the order on the bail plea of jailed parliamentarian Engineer Rashid in connection with a 2017 Jammu and Kashmir terror funding case.
Rashid, who recently won the Baramulla seat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections by defeating former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, seeks bail as his case progresses.
The Additional Sessions Judge Chanderjit Singh has reserved its order on the bail application of Rashid Engineer after a detailed in-camera hearing. The court is expected to pronounce its decision on September 11,.2024.
Engineer Rashid, who was arrested in connection with a 2017 Jammu and Kashmir terror funding case, has submitted a second regular bail application in Delhi's Patiala House court.
Earlier, the same court had granted Sheikh Abdul Rashid, also known as Engineer Rashid, a two-hour custody parole on July 5 to allow him to take the oath as a Member of Parliament.
In 2005, Engineer Rashid was arrested by the Special Operations Group (SOG) in Srinagar for allegedly supporting militants and was held for three months and 17 days. He faced charges of anti-national activities and was incarcerated in Cargo, Humhama, and Raj Bagh prisons. However, the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Srinagar later dropped all charges against him on humanitarian grounds.
In August 2019, Rashid was again arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). During his incarceration, he filed his nomination for the 2024 parliamentary elections from jail and won by a margin of 204,000 votes, defeating former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
