New Delhi, Sep 10, KNT: In a significant development, Delhi’s Patiala House Court has granted interim bail to Engineer Rashid, a Member of Parliament from North Kashmir’s Baramulla constituency, in a militant funding case. The bail is effective until October 2.
Rashid has been incarcerated in Delhi’s Tihar Jail since 2019, following his arrest in 2017 by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. His involvement in the case surfaced during the investigation of Kashmiri businessman Zahoor Watali, who was accused of funding militant groups and separatists in Kashmir.
The NIA had filed a chargesheet against several individuals, including Kashmiri separatist leader Muhammad Yasin Malik, Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Saeed, and Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin, in connection with the case.
Notably, Yasin Malik was sentenced to life imprisonment by a trial court in 2022 after pleading guilty to the charges.
Rashid’s interim bail comes as a temporary reprieve for the MP, who has been behind bars for over four years. [KNT]
