Delhi court grants custody parole to Engineer Rashid for Parliament attendance
The order was passed by Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh of the Patiala House Court, who also rejected Mr. Rashid's application seeking interim bail to carry out his duties as a parliamentarian.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) opposed the interim bail plea and submitted that if Mr. Rashid is permitted to attend Parliament in custody, he should bear the cost of travel.
Mr. Rashid's counsels — advocates Aditya Wadhwa, Vikhyat Oberoi, and Nishita Gupta — contended that he should be granted bail and, in the alternative, be allowed to attend Parliament in custody without being asked to pay travel expenses, as he was seeking to discharge a public duty.
In previous instances, trial courts had granted interim bail to Mr. Rashid for attending Parliament as well as for campaigning during the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections held in October 2024.
Mr. Rashid, who has been lodged in Tihar Jail since 2019, contested and won the 2024 Lok Sabha polls from Baramulla, defeating the incumbent Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
He was arrested by the NIA under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in connection with a 2017 terror funding case. According to the NIA's FIR, his name emerged during the interrogation of businessman and co-accused Zahoor Watali.
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