delhi-court-denies-bail-to-engineer-rashid

A Delhi court on Monday rejected the request of jailed Jammu and Kashmir MP Engineer Rashid for custody parole to attend the upcoming Parliament session.

Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh dismissed the plea and scheduled the hearing for Rashid’s regular bail application on March 19. A detailed order on the decision is still awaited.

Earlier, on March 3, the court had asked the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to respond to Rashid’s request. After hearing arguments from both sides, the court reserved its verdict. 

 

Rashid’s application, filed by his lawyer Vikhyat Oberoi on February 27, argued that as a Member of Parliament, he needed to attend the session to fulfill his public responsibilities. However, since his regular bail plea is still pending, the court refused to grant custody parole.

The second part of Parliament’s Budget Session is scheduled to begin on March 10 and will continue until April 4. Rashid had been granted a two-day parole earlier to attend a parliamentary session.

 

Also Read: Delhi HC directs NIA to expedite Engineer Rashid's bail plea

Rashid has been in Tihar Jail since 2019 after being arrested by the NIA under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in connection with a 2017 terror funding case. On February 24, the Delhi High Court directed the sessions judge to quickly decide Rashid’s bail plea. 

This direction was based on a previous order from December 24, 2024, where the sessions court requested the district judge to transfer the case to a special court designated for lawmakers.

Rashid's name came up during the NIA’s investigation into Kashmiri businessman Zahoor Watali, who was accused of funding separatist activities in Kashmir. 

The NIA later filed a chargesheet against multiple individuals, including Kashmiri separatist leader Yasin Malik, Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Saeed, and Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin. In 2022, a trial court sentenced Malik to life imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to the charges.

 

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