Delhi High Court Approves Bail for UAPA Suspect Accused of Moving Money Tied to Lashkar-E-Taiba Operations.

The Delhi High Court granted bail to a person accused of transferring funds related to Lashkar-E-Taiba activities, under Section 43D (5) of the UAPA. The Court overturned the Special NIA Court’s decision that had denied bail. It highlighted the long detention of the accused and the absence of evidence proving that he knowingly took part in LeT activities. Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Amit Sharma noted that the accused had been in jail for over four years and stated, “Considering all the facts and circumstances, this Court believes the Appellant meets the requirements of Section 43D (5) of the UAPA for bail.”

Advocate Aarif Ali represented the Appellant, while SPP Rahul Tyagi represented the Respondent. An FIR was filed under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA), claiming that LeT operatives were collecting funds for operations in India. One co-accused was said to be a key member of LeT and involved in planning attacks. The accused was arrested for allegedly transferring Rs. 3.5 lakh through hawala channels at the request of a Pakistani national. He argued that he was unaware of the recipient’s links to LeT and that the funds were never delivered due to a failed transfer. Additionally, it was pointed out that the appellant had been in custody for nearly five years, with only nine out of 221 witnesses examined, making a quick trial unlikely.

The High Court observed that although the chargesheet mentioned phone calls between the appellant and the intended recipient, there was no proof that the appellant knew the recipient was an LeT operative. The Court also pointed out that two co-accused had already been released from the case. As a result, the Court ordered, “The Appellant is to be granted bail after providing a personal bond of Rs. 50,000/- along with two sureties of the same amount to the satisfaction of the learned Special Court.” Thus, the High Court approved the Appeal.

Cause Title: Javed Ali @ Javed v. National Investigation Agency (Neutral Citation: 2024:DHC:8797-DB) Appearance:
Appellant: Advocates Aarif Ali, Pankaj Tiwari, Mujahid Ahmad and Dhirendra Kumar Verma
Respondent: SPP Rahul Tyagi; APP Jatin and Vikas Walia; Advocates Sangeet Sibou and Aniket