- विज्ञापन -
New Delhi: In response of the plea filed by the jailed Member Parliament North Kashmir Engineer Rashid to attend the Budget session in Parliament Delhi High Court on Thursday sought response of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on his interim bail who has been in Tihar Jail in connection with the Jammu and Kashmir terror-funding case.
Engineer has sought interim bail from January 31 to April 5, aligning with the Parliament’s session schedule. The first part of the Parliament’s Budget session will begin on January 31, with the Union Budget scheduled for February 1, and will conclude on February 13. The second part of the session is set to commence on March 10 and will conclude on April 5, 2024.
The Bench of Justice Vikas Mahajan noted that the NIA counsel had submitted that they needed time to take instructions on the matter.
The counsel for Rashid Engineer submitted that his entire constituency cannot go unrepresented for a long period, as he was not granted interim bail during the last session. He also pointed out that his regular bail application has been pending since September 2024.
However, the counsel for the NIA pointed out that the issue regarding whether the NIA court can hear cases involving MPs and MLAs is still pending. The High Court registry has approached the Supreme Court for clarification.
Recently, the Delhi High Court issued notice to the NIA on Engineer’s plea, which sought directions from the High Court to the trial court judge to expedite a decision on his pending regular bail application or to adjudicate the matter.
Engineer moved the High Court after Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Chander Jit Singh, the special judge assigned to NIA cases, declined to rule on his bail application on December 23. The judge stated that the court only had the authority to hear miscellaneous applications, not bail petitions.
Previously, the district judge returned the case to the ASJ court after a request from the ASJ to transfer the matter to a designated court for lawmakers, given Rashid Engineer’s status as an MP. This transfer request was made with the consent of both the accused and the prosecuting agency, the NIA. The district judge’s decision came after noting that the issue of court jurisdiction was still pending before the Delhi High Court. Until the High Court rules on jurisdiction, the ASJ court will continue to hear the case.
Both Rashid’s counsel and the NIA had agreed to keep the matter in the current court. In addition to the NIA’s case, the special judge had suggested moving a related money laundering case and Rashid’s regular bail application to the court designated for lawmakers.
