The Supreme Court stayed a Delhi High Court order directing the premature release of Mohammed Rashid Khan, convicted in the 1993 Bowbazar bomb blasts that killed 69 people in Kolkata. The Court issued notice on West Bengal’s plea challenging the release, while granting an interim stay on the order concerning the TADA convict.
The Supreme Court put on hold an order by the Delhi High Court that had directed the premature release of Mohammed Rashid Khan, convicted for his role in the 1993 Bowbazar bomb blasts in Kolkata, which killed 69 people.
A bench of Justices PK Mishra and Sanjeev Sachdeva issued an interim stay and simultaneously issued notice on a petition filed by the Government of West Bengal challenging the Delhi High Court’s decision to release the TADA convict.
Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for the State, told the court that the State’s Sentence Review Board (SSRB) had recommended against Khan’s release.
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He submitted that Khan was convicted under the Terrorist and Disruptive Acts (Prevention) Act (TADA), even though the High Court had ordered his premature release. He also noted that TADA is considered the predecessor of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Raju questioned the Delhi High Court’s reliance on a reformative approach in a case where around 70 people died and hundreds were left injured.
Senior advocate MR Shamshad, representing Rashid Khan in the caveat, submitted that Khan has spent over 33 years in prison. He also referred to the fact that co-accused Pannalal Jaiswara was granted remission in March 2014. The bench, however, observed that the roles assigned to the two accused were not the same and remarked that Rashid Khan was the “master mind.”
Earlier, On June 5, the Delhi High Court allowed Khan’s petition, noting that he had spent more than 33 years in custody. The court also cited his prison conduct and the reformative philosophy behind premature release.
Additionally, On August 31, 2001, Khan had been convicted under the Indian Penal Code, the Explosives Act, and the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act for his involvement in the March 16, 1993 Bowbazar bomb blasts. Those blasts occurred in a crowded area in Kolkata and resulted in the death of 69 people.
Khan had sought remission on the basis that he had spent over 33 years in judicial custody. He told the court that he is 77 years old and suffers from multiple age-related health conditions.
He further argued that co-convict Pannalal Jaysoara was granted premature release on March 5, 2014, and that while the SSRB had recommended premature release on March 25, 2015, the recommendation was later revisited and rejected in September 2015.
The High Court, while ordering his release held that reformation should be the dominant objective of a punishment and during incarceration, every effort should be made to recreate the good man out of a convicted prisoner.
The 1993 Bowbazar blast took place on the night of March 16, 1993, in Kolkata, killing 69 people and destroying several residential buildings.
The explosion was reportedly caused by a large cache of explosives allegedly stored by local don Rashid Khan, and it occurred just days after the Mumbai serial blasts.