Prosecution Cites CCTV Footage and Knife Link to Oppose Bail of Bangladeshi National Accused of Attacking Saif Ali Khan
The Mumbai Police has strongly opposed the bail plea of 30-year-old Shariful Islam, a Bangladeshi national accused of housebreaking and assaulting Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan, before a Mumbai Court, while citing strong evidence against the accused.
On Thursday, the city police placed key material before the court, including fingerprint matches, facial recognition results, and forensic lab findings to argue against his release.
In its reply, the prosecution submitted that the accused’s left-hand fingerprints were recovered from the crime scene. It also referred to a facial recognition test, stating that the suspect’s face matched the individual seen in CCTV footage from Khan’s residence.
It was further argued that the accused, being a foreign national, posed a serious flight risk and there was a likelihood of witness tampering if he were released on bail.
"The possibility of him repeatedly committing such crimes cannot be ruled out," the prosecution submitted.
A Chemical Analysis (CA) report from the Forensic Science Laboratory, Kalina, confirmed that a piece of knife blade recovered from the scene, another broken piece found on the accused, and a fragment extracted from Saif Ali Khan’s body were all part of the same weapon.
Additionally, a medical report also stated that Khan’s injuries were consistent with wounds inflicted by this recovered weapon.
This is the second time Islam has moved the court seeking bail. He has claimed that he has been falsely implicated and that the First Information Report (FIR) is nothing more than the complainant’s imaginary story.
It was further contended on his behalf that even if the statements of witnesses were accepted in full, without admitting anything on record and purely for the sake of argument, the allegations still would not fulfill the ingredients of Section 311 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which pertains to robbery or dacoity with an attempt to cause death or grievous hurt.
On January 16, 2025, actor Saif Ali Khan was allegedly attacked inside his Mumbai residence. Following the investigation, the accused, identified as Shariful Islam, was arrested on January 19.
During interrogation, it was allegedly revealed that he is a Bangladeshi national who had illegally entered India. He is accused of grievously injuring Khan, his employee, and another individual using a deadly weapon, with the intent to cause death.
The bail plea is listed for hearing on August 1.