The agency said a confidential report indicating that Engineer previously misused the telephone facilities in Central Jail, Tihar, leading to restrictions on his call privileges….reports Asian Lite News
Delhi’s special NIA court on Tuesday granted interim bail to parliamentarian Rashid Engineer in connection with a terror funding case. The interim bail has been granted till October 2, by the court, which directed him to surrender on October 3 before the concerned jail. By the order, the court allow him to campaign for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections.
Rashid Engineer had filed a bail application requesting interim bail for three months, while his regular bail application remains pending before the same court, with an order expected on September 11.
His counsel, Vikhyat Oberoi, argued that the interim bail is needed for campaigning in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections and to fulfil his duties as a parliamentarian.
Recently, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had opposed regular bail plea of Rashid Engineer in the UAPA case and stated that Rashid Engineer, as a Member of Parliament, may misuse his position to influence witnesses and obstruct justice if granted bail.
The agency said a confidential report indicating that Engineer previously misused the telephone facilities in Central Jail, Tihar, leading to restrictions on his call privileges. The NIA fears he might misuse his liberty similarly if released on bail. The NIA claims Engineer defended the 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed’s terror activities as a ‘political cause,’ suggesting a troubling alignment with extremist narratives.
The NIA asserts that Engineer is involved in a strategy by Pakistani and secessionist groups to portray terrorist acts as political struggles, aiming to incite separatism in Jammu and Kashmir and given these concerns, the NIA urged the Patiala House Court of Delhi to reject Engineer’s bail application.
Rashid’s party leader Ishtiyaq Qadri said that is very happy news.
“This is very happy news. We always hoped he would get bail. He should be given an absolute bail instead of interim bail. He is absolutely innocent and behind bars for 6 years for no reason,” Qadri said.
Democratic Progressive Azad Party Chief, Ghulam Nabi Azad also welcomed the court’s decision.
“I welcome the interim bail order granted to Eng Rashid Sahib by the Delhi Patiala House Court. As a democratically elected MP with a strong mandate, this is a step towards justice and his right to campaign in the assembly elections,” Azad said on X.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Spokesperson Abhijeet Jasrotia said that Rashid has been granted bail by the law of the land.
“The country runs by law, if the law of the country has given the bail, then there are no issues. The law of the land that has restored Article 370 approved his (Engineer Rashid) bail,” Jasrotia said.
Sajjad Lone demands PM’s apology to Kashmiris
Jammu and Kashmir People’s Conference (JKPC) chairman Sajjad Gani Lone on Tuesday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should apologise to the people of Kashmir and adopt an “Indian-ness” policy to bring them into the mainstream.
In an exclusive interview with ANI, Lone stated that the BJP’s current approach in Kashmir is counterproductive. “The problem is that the BJP has a BJP policy in Kashmir. Through that BJP policy, they get votes across the country but they don’t have an India policy in Kashmir, for Indian-ness to get Kashmiris into the mainstream,” he said.
When asked what the BJP could do to address this issue, Lone emphasised the importance of an apology from the Prime Minister.
“The Prime Minister should apologise to the people of Kashmir and say that inadvertently, maybe, we might have done things that might have humiliated you. We might have done things that might have hurt you. We did it unintentionally. He should assure them that they are an integral part of India, it would make a significant difference. Give us another chance. And I’m telling you, if you (PM) use these words, everything will be fine. What you need are words,” he said.
Regarding the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, Lone clarified that it can only be achieved through parliamentary action.
“See, statehood can only be restored by the Parliament. We can’t. And I think there should be a policy for all the people who are elected that beyond a certain time, if they don’t give us state back, then we should stop. We should leave the assembly. There is no point in being a part of an assembly, which is humiliation. I think one year or two years or six months or three months after that, we should all en masse resign and leave,” Sajjad Lone said.
He further pushed his demand to restore statehood and warned that if the Centre fails to meet their demands, they will not be a part of this assembly.
“This will be our political response; that’s fine if you don’t want to give us; we don’t want to be a part of this assembly. Because this will make people think that we are not delivering. That I think we should not do. We should not betray our people beyond a certain time. If we don’t get statehood, there should be a clear unanimity that we should then leave. This is what I believe,” he added.
The JKPC chief also highlighted the importance of statehood for economic development in Kashmir.
“We can only work towards an economic Kashmir if we have statehood, because without it, there is very little you can do. You can’t pass money bills; you can’t pass anything,” he said.
Omar alleges political manoeuvre
Omar Abdullah said, “I knew this would happen sometime or the other. i feel sorry for the people of Baramulla because he has not been granted bail for the welfare of the people of Baramulla or attend Parliament. He has been granted bail just to contest elections and fetch votes after which he will be sent back to Tihar Jail. People of North Kashmir will again be unrepresented.”
The bail of parliamentarian Rashid Engineer came as a boost to the Awami Ittehad party just ahead of the Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls.
ALSO READ: Lockheed Martin, Tata ink mega deal
