The Delhi High Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing of Baramulla MP Abdul Rashid Sheikh, also known as Engineer Rashid, and listed the matter for July 31. The adjournment came after Senior Advocate N Hariharan, representing Rashid, was unable to reach the court due to heavy traffic caused by rain.
Engineer Rashid has filed a plea seeking interim bail to attend the ongoing Parliament session.
A division bench comprising Justice Vivek Chaudhary and Justice Shalinder Kaur was scheduled to hear the matter. Advocate Vikhyat Oberoi, appearing on Rashid’s behalf, requested a pass over, informing the court that the senior counsel was stuck in traffic. The court allowed the request, but even during the second call, the senior advocate could not appear.
The bench observed that the application for modification of an earlier order is still pending and the current application raises the same issue. “We cannot hear the same issue again,” the court remarked.
Counsel for the petitioner clarified that the fresh application also seeks interim bail as an alternative. However, the bench advised the petitioner to press the modification plea instead, stating that the issue had already been considered by a previous division bench.
Senior Advocate Sidharth Luthra and Special Public Prosecutor Akshai Malik appeared virtually on behalf of the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
On July 25, the High Court had issued notice to the NIA regarding the interim bail plea. Earlier, on July 22, the Special NIA Court had rejected Rashid’s request for interim bail but granted custody parole instead.
The Patiala House Court allowed custody parole for Rashid from July 24 to August 4, specifically for the duration of the Parliament session. The order stipulated that Rashid must bear his own travel and security expenses and adhere to the imposed conditions.
In the latest plea, Rashid has requested that the custody parole be extended from July 23 to August 21 to cover the full duration of the Monsoon Session. He has also sought to set aside the directive requiring him to bear travel and related expenses, arguing that attending Parliament is a public duty, not a personal activity.
Rashid is currently in judicial custody in a terror funding case linked to Hafiz Saeed.
He was represented by Senior Advocate N Hariharan, along with Advocates Aditya Wadhwa, Vikhyat Oberoi, and Nishita Gupta.
During arguments before the Special Court, it was submitted that Rashid had previously been granted interim bail on September 10, 2024, for election campaigning, which was extended three times. Therefore, his counsels argued, he cannot be considered a security threat.
Additionally, the Delhi High Court had earlier permitted him to attend Parliament in custody on two occasions — February 10 and March 25, 2025 — during which he actively participated, the counsel added.
The NIA, however, opposed the interim bail plea and insisted that if Rashid is allowed to attend Parliament in custody, he should continue to bear the expenses.
Rashid’s legal team countered that, as a sitting MP fulfilling his public responsibilities, he should not be made to cover such costs.
Engineer Rashid has previously been granted permission to attend Parliament sessions and to take his oath as a Member of Parliament. (AGENCIES)
