Baramulla Lok Sabha MP Engineer Rashid on Monday moved the Patiala House court in New Delhi, seeking interim bail in a terror-funding case to attend the ongoing winter session of Parliament.
After Rashid urged the principal district and sessions judge, Vimal Kumar Yadav, to grant him reprieve, the court asked the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to file a response by November 27.
Engineer Rashid, appearing virtually in court from Tihar Jail, said, “I have been elected by my people. I was not allowed to attend the last session. With folded hands I request you that I may be granted interim bail.”
During the proceedings, the counsel for Rashid and the NIA jointly sought the matter to remain in the court hearing it and not transfer it to another court.
The court will hear both sides on November 27.
The Baramulla MP, who heads the Awami Ittehad Party (AIP), is in judicial custody in a terror-funding case that is being investigated by the NIA. He had recently surrendered at Tihar Jail after his interim bail expired. In August 2019, Rashid was 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 2.04lakdh votes, National Conference’s Omar Abdullah.
In 2022, the NIA Court of Patiala House Court ordered the framing of charges against Rashid and several other key figures, including Hafiz Saeed, Syed Salahuddin, Yasin Malik, Shabbir Shah, Masarat Alam, Zahoor Ahmed Watali, Bitta Karate, Aftab Ahmed Shah, Avtar Ahmed Shah, Naeem Khan, and Bashir Ahmed Butt (also known as Peer Saifullah).
The charges are part of an ongoing investigation into terror funding in Jammu and Kashmir, where the National Investigation Agency (NIA) alleges that various militant organizations, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, Hizbul Mujahideen, Jaish-e-Mohammed, and JKLF, collaborated with Pakistan’s intelligence agency, ISI, to orchestrate attacks on civilians and security forces in the region.
