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Engineer Rashid approached the court seeking interim bail or custody parole to allow him to join the parliament budget session. It was argued that Rashid’s constituency cannot be left unrepresented and therefore he should be allowed to join the session. In the previous hearing, Rashid contended that he was asked by the President to convene a session in prison.
The Delhi High Court, on Monday, granted custody parole to Abdul Rashid Sheikh (Alias Engineer Rashid), an accused in the Kashmir terror funding case, to attend the upcoming Parliament budget session.
The bench of Justice Vikas Mahajan held, “Custody parole is being granted for 2 days for the duration of the session on February 11 and 13. On both days, the petition would be custody of the State with adequate police security and protection to and from the concerned location of the parliament session which shall be appropriately secured by the State in consultation with the Ministry of Home Affairs up to the point allowed.”
Rashid was prohibited from using a phone or any other communication device and was barred from accessing the internet. The court also directed the Secretary General of Lok Sabha to ensure compliance with these conditions. Furthermore, the petitioner was restricted from communicating with anyone except in his capacity as a Member of Parliament and was not permitted to address the media.
Senior Advocate Sidharth Luthra, representing the NIA, during a hearing on February 7, opposed the petition. He referenced the legal precedent set by the Kalmadi case, which limited the scope for such requests, emphasizing that relief had only been granted in cases of election campaigning or medical necessity.
While Senior Advocate Hariharan, representing Rashid, argued that even though Rashid was granted bail by the trial court in September 2024 for campaigning, his current application for bail has been pending for five months. Senior Advocate Hariharan, further commented 'When it suits them (NIA), I can get interim bail for campaigning. When it does not suit them, I cannot get interim bail'.
Background:
Engineer Rashid had won the Baramulla parliamentary seat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. However, he had been in judicial custody at Tihar Jail since 2019 after his arrest by the NIA under the UAPA Act in relation to a 2017 terror-funding case.
Rashid's involvement emerged during the investigation of Kashmiri businessman Zahoor Watali, who faced allegations of financing terrorist organizations and separatist activities in Kashmir. Following this, the ED filed a money laundering case based on the NIA's FIR, accusing Rashid and others of conspiring to wage war against the government and inciting unrest in Kashmir. The cases also involved prominent figures such as Hafiz Saeed, the Pakistan-based leader of Lashkar-e-Taiba and mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, and Syed Salahuddin, the leader of Hizbul Mujahideen.
In September 2024, Engineer Rashid was granted interim bail by the Rouse Avenue Court to campaign in the elections.
For Petitioner: Senior Advocate N. Hariharan with Advocates Aditya Wadhwa, Vikhyat Oberoi, Nishita Gupta, Shivam Prakash, Ravi Sharma, Jagriti Pandey, Punya Rekha Angara, Vasundhara N., Sana Singh, Aman Akhtar, Vinayak Gautam and Hasnain KhwajaFor Respondent: Senior Advocate Sidharth Luthra, Special Public Prosecutor Akshai Malik with Advocates Ayush Aggarwal, K. Saleem, K.P. Rustom Khan and Yatharth SharmaCase Title: Abdul Rashid Sheikh v NIA
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