Delhi HC grants bail to Hizbul chief’s elder son, rejects younger son’s plea

NEW new new delhi: The Delhi heights margaret court on fri granted bail to Hizb-ul-Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin’s elder son, Syed Ahmad Shakeel, in a 2011 terror funding case on the ground that he had already spent nearly seven years in prison and there was no certainty when the trial would end.A bench of justices Navin Chawla and Shalinder Kaur said,”The prosecution is yet to examine a substantial number of witnesses, as only 32 witnesses have been examined till date. The appellant has already suffered prolonged incarceration of around 6 years and 11 months, without any certainty of the trial concluding within a reasonable time”.“In our considered opinion, keeping in view the role assigned to the appellant, continued detention of the appellant at this stage would not serve the ends of justice,” the bench said, ordering Shakeel’s release on bail on furnishing a personal bond of ₹1 lakh and two sureties. Shakeel had approached the high court against the city court’s 2021 order of dismissing his plea.The bench, however, rejected Salahuddin’s younger son, Syed Shahid Yusuf’s bail plea in the same case, noting that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had prima facie evidence to establish his involvement in the conspiracy and that he was allegedly in direct contact with the known members of the proscribed terrorist organisation.The high court noted that statements of protected witnesses were being recorded before the special court. “This court cannot ignore the larger conspiracy brought forth by the prosecution, which poses a threat to the unity, integrity, and security of the nation,” the bench said.“The nature of the allegations and the material placed on record prima facie establish the appellant’s involvement in this conspiracy and his direct contact with known members of the proscribed terrorist outfit,” the verdict said..Yusuf and Shakeel were arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with a 2011 terror funding case in Jammu and Kashmir involving hawala transactions. Yusuf was arrested in October 2017 and Shakeel was taken into custody in August 2018.Their father Syed Salahuddin is a designated global terrorist and is one of the wanted criminals in India for his role in orchestrating terror attacks.NIA had alleged at the time that Shakeel had received funds through a US-based international wire transfer company from Aijaz Ahmed Bhat.The agency had booked Shakeel under various provisions of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for raising funds for terrorist acts and involvement in conspiracy to commit terrorist acts, alleging that he was a part of the wider network for mobilising and transmitting funds from abroad to finance terrorism in India.In his bail plea, Shakeel’s lawyer Jawahar Raja had pointed out that he had been in custody for more than six years and there was no likelihood that the trial, which started in 2020, would conclude soon since the prosecution had only examined 32 witnesses. He also submitted that there was no evidence to allege that he had been a member of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen or had any knowledge that the money received in his account was for terrorist activities.Additional solicitor general Vikramjeet Banerjee, who appeared for NIA along with special public prosecutor Akshai Malik and advocate Khawar Saleem, opposed the bail, asserting that his father was one of the most wanted terrorists whose activities were declared inimical to India’s sovereignty and integrity and had received large sums amounting to ₹2,74,744 in six installment, at his father’s behest.