New Delhi [India], July 18 (ANI): The Patiala House Court on Saturday granted regular bail to Human Rights activist Khurram Parvez and journalist Irfan Mehraj, accused in terror funding in Jammu and Kashmir through NGO, societies. Khurram was arrested on March 22, 2023.
A case registered by the NIA in 2020. Earlier, Parvez was granted bail by the Delhi High Court in a similar matter in June.
Principal District and Sessions Judge Pitambar Dutt granted bail to Khurram Parvez and Irfan Mehraj after considering the delay aspect and other submissions.
While granting bail, the court also referred to the order passed by the Delhi High Court while granting bail to Khurram Parvez.
The court noted, “It is amply clear that the allegations attributed by the NIA against accused Khurram Parvez in this case are mainly based upon the testimony of oral witnesses, whose authenticity shall be tested during the trial.
“The accused is in custody since March 22, 2023, and there is no possibility of completion of trial of this case in the near future, as charges against the accused persons have not yet been framed,” the court said in the bail order.
The court observed, “Moreover, the High Court has granted bail to the accused in another NIA in which somewhat similar allegations have been attributed against the accused and also held that the accused is infirm and deserves special consideration.”
Advocate Swati Khanna, guided by a senior advocate, argued for Khurram Parvez.
The counsel for the accused argued that the present case was registered on the basis of an information received by the Central Government that certain NGOs, Trusts, Societies, and Organisations collect funds domestically and abroad through donations and in the name of charity or religion and transfer collected funds to Jammu and Kashmir to sustain the secessionist and terrorist movement in Kashmir Valley and registered a case on October 8, 2020, under section 12OB & 124A IPC read with Sections 17, 18, 22A, 22C, 38, 39 & 40 UAPA.
Division Bench of Delhi High Court, while granting bail to Khurram Parvez on June 10, had said, “We are also to keep in mind that the appellant is infirm. Though the learned Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) has emphasised that his infirmity has not deterred the appellant from still indulging in activities, which he describes as being anti-national, the fact remains that the appellant is infirm and deserves that special consideration.”
The trial court noted that after the said observation, the High Court granted bail to the accused on June 10, 2026, in that case.
“The observation made by the Honourable High Court in that order that the accused is infirm and deserves special consideration is also applicable in the present case as well,” the court said on July 18.
The court has granted bail on furnishing a personal bond in the sum of Rs 2 lakh with two sureties in the same amount.
The court has imposed conditions, including accused shall surrender his passport, if any, before this Court. If he does not hold a passport, an affidavit to that effect shall be filed by him before this Court.
The accused shall not leave the National Capital Territory of Delhi without prior permission of this Court, the court directed.
The accused had stated in the bail application that he was arrested in the present case on March 22, 2023, and since then, he has been in Judicial Custody.
It was further averred that he is an internationally renowned Kashmiri Human Rights defender and a Programme Coordinator and Spokesperson of the Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS) and also a Chairperson of a Philippines-based organisation, namely Asian Federation against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD), which is a federation of 13 NGOs from 10 Asian countries campaigning on the issue of enforced disappearances.
It was also stated that the Applicant has deep roots in the society and has been working relentlessly to promote non-violence, truth, and justice and a democratic environment in the Kashmir valley.
In 2006, the Applicant Khurram Parvez was honoured with the prestigious 2006 Reebok International Human Rights Award, which recognises activists who fight for human rights through non-violent means. He was also a recipient of the prestigious Chevening Fellowship at the University of Glasgow, UK, from December 2005 to April 2006 and the International Visitor’s Leadership Program, a United States Government programme for mid-career professionals in 2009.
The plea also stated that it is a matter of public record that between December, 2011 and December, 2015, the Applicant participated in various inter- community dialogues between members of the majority Kashmiri Muslim community and minority Kashmiri Hindu community, enabling regional and international networks to promote peaceful dialogue and solve complex socio-political issues of the Kashmir valley.
In 2004, during an election monitoring exercise with his colleagues in North Kashmir, Khurram Parvez lost a leg after the vehicle they were travelling in was hit by a landmine blast; therefore, he requires special care, and this cannot be ensured if he continues to be incarcerated indefinitely. It is also averred in the application that the applicant has been a victim of the State’s unlawful incarceration before, as well as in several cases. (ANI)
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