The Delhi High Court has permitted incarcerated MP Engineer Rashid to attend the ongoing parliamentary session under custody, dismissing concerns raised by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
He is expected to attend the session from today until 4 April.
A bench comprising Justices Chandra Dhari Singh and Anup Jairam Bhambhani directed the Director General (Prisons) to facilitate Rashid’s escorted travel to Parliament during the session.
He will be accompanied by security personnel in plain clothes and handed over to parliamentary security during proceedings.
Rashid has sought a waiver from the court regarding the requirement to bear the cost of travel arrangements between the jail and Parliament after the court allowed his attendance.
According to an email received by Rashid’s counsel, he has been asked to pay a total of ₹8,74,716 for attending Parliament over six days. However, his counsel has submitted an application stating that Rashid cannot afford the amount.
Also read: Delhi HC reserves order on MP Engineer Rashid’s bail plea
Rashid further noted that on previous occasions, when he was granted a two-day parole to attend Parliament, he was not asked to cover travel-related expenses.
In his application, Rashid stated that “with great difficulty”, he managed to pay for one day’s expenses after “two or three persons from the constituency have collected funds and made payments from their accounts to the jail authorities.”
Meanwhile, the court, in its order on 25 March, imposed strict conditions barring Rashid from using communication devices, accessing the internet, or interacting with anyone outside jail except within Parliament premises. He is also prohibited from addressing the media.
Currently lodged in Tihar Jail, Rashid has been in judicial custody since his arrest by the NIA in 2019 in connection with a 2017 terror-funding case.
He had initially sought interim bail or custody parole to attend the Lok Sabha session but later requested in-custody attendance instead.
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