NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has approached the Supreme Court seeking clarification regarding the appropriate trial court to hear the bail plea of Baramulla MP Engineer Rashid, currently imprisoned in a terror funding case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The issue arose after the special NIA court, which had reserved its order on Rashid’s bail plea, later transferred the matter, stating that only a designated MP/MLA court has jurisdiction to hear cases involving elected lawmakers.
Justice Vikas Mahajan, while hearing Rashid’s petition for an expedited bail decision, directed the Delhi High Court’s Registrar General to obtain clarification from the Supreme Court on the matter.
The case is now listed for further hearing on February 6. Rashid has also sought interim bail to attend the ongoing Budget session of Parliament.
Senior Advocate N Hariharan, representing Rashid, argued that his client had been granted interim bail in the past, including instances when he was campaigning during the Jammu and Kashmir elections.
“I am ready to address all objections, but for now, I am only requesting interim bail. The merits of the case can be discussed later,” Hariharan submitted.
Opposing the request, Senior Advocate Sidharth Luthra, appearing for the National Investigation Agency (NIA), contended that Rashid’s bail plea must be heard by a division bench as per the NIA Act.
However, the high court noted that Rashid had been granted interim bail multiple times in the past without any allegations of misuse.