Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra, representing the NIA, stated that it would take around ten days to receive a response from the High Court and requested the case be listed after that period.
![[Terror Funding Case] NIA Seeks High Court’s Nod to Transfer MP/MLA Court Jurisdiction to Special NIA Court for Engineer Rashid’s Case](https://i0.wp.com/lawchakra.in/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/image-33-1.png?resize=820%2C461&ssl=1)
New Delhi [India], November 27: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) informed the Patiala House Court that it plans to write to the Delhi High Court, requesting the transfer of authority from the MP/MLA court to the Special NIA Court to handle the case involving Engineer Sheikh Abdul Rashid, now a Member of Parliament.
Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra, representing the NIA, stated that it would take around ten days to receive a response from the High Court and requested the case be listed after that period.
The NIA argued against transferring the case to the MP/MLA court, asserting it would delay the trial. The Special NIA Court has referred the matter to the District Judge for consideration of this transfer. Engineer Rashid’s counsel, Advocate Vikhyat Oberoi, requested the court issue a formal notice regarding his interim bail plea, which is pending.
Previously, Rashid had sought interim bail to attend parliamentary sessions, but the NIA Court sent all pending applications, including the bail plea, to the District Judge, who scheduled the next hearing for December 6. The NIA’s position emphasizes that cases under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) fall strictly within the NIA Court’s jurisdiction, as per the NIA Act.
Engineer Rashid, an Independent MP from Baramulla, Jammu and Kashmir, was arrested in 2019 under UAPA charges related to terror funding. He recently surrendered at Tihar Jail after his interim bail expired. During incarceration, Rashid contested and won the 2024 parliamentary election, defeating former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
The charges against Rashid and others, including prominent figures like Hafiz Saeed and Yasin Malik, are linked to alleged funding of militant organizations such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen. The NIA claims these groups, backed by Pakistan’s ISI, aimed to destabilize Jammu and Kashmir through orchestrated attacks and unrest.
