NIA Opposes MP Engineer Rashid's Plea In Delhi High Court Seeking Interim Bail In UAPA Case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday opposed before the Delhi High Court the plea filed by Jammu and Kashmir MP Rashid Engineer seeking interim bail in a terror funding case registered under UAPA.Rashid has sought interim bail in order to attend the Parliamentary budget session which commenced on January 31. The session concludes on April 04. In the alternative, he has sought custody parole during the budget session.Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra appearing for NIA told Justice Vikas Mahajan that Rashid has an alternative remedy under the NIA Act and a writ petition does not lie to seek the relief. Rashid has filed the interim bail application in his main petition seeking expeditious ruling by the trial court on his second regular bail plea. It is his case that the special NIA judge had refused to pass any order in his bail plea despite hearing him on length on the ground that it was not an MP/MLA Court. Referring to Section 21 of the NIA Act, he said that Rashid must file an appeal challenging the trial court order before a division bench of the High Court. “Does a writ lie? Please see the NIA Act…. If the order failing to hear him was an order denying bail then the remedy was to file an appeal. He doesn't do that. I ask myself, can your lordships be asked to act contrary to Section 21 of NIA Act?…. It has to go to two judges. He cannot circumvent the statutory bar,” Luthra said. Rebutting the stand, Senior Advocate N Hariharan appearing for Rashid said that the impugned order is not an order that denied bail to the lawmaker and thus, cannot be challenged in appeal under Section 21. Interlocutory order cannot come as appeal under the statute, he said. Luthra informed Court that NIA had written a representation to Registrar General of the Delhi High Court in November last year to designate the special NIA court as an MP/MLA Court. He further submitted that the Registrar General recently moved an application before the Supreme Court seeking clarification on the issue. Accordingly, Justice Mahajan issued notice to the HC Registrar General to ascertain the status of the clarification sought. The matter will now be heard on February 06. In his petition, Rashid has sought directions to the trial court judge to expedite a decision on his pending regular bail application. In the alternative, he has prayed that the writ petition be treated as his second regular bail application and be decided by the High Court. The development ensued after the ASJ, which was adjudicating the UAPA case, in December last year said that it could only decide Rashid's miscellaneous application but not his regular bail application.The Additional Sessions Judge Court had then requested the District Judge to transfer the UAPA case to a MP/MLA designated court designated after Rashid became an MP.Rashid was elected from the Baramulla constituency in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and has been lodged in Tihar Jail since 2019 after the NIA arrested him under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in the 2017 terror-funding case.Rashid has been in jail since 2019 after he was charged by NIA under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in alleged terror funding case.Title: Abdul Rashid Sheikh v. NIA

NIA Opposes MP Engineer Rashid's Plea In Delhi High Court Seeking Interim Bail In UAPA Case

Nupur Thapliyal

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