PDP leader Waheed-ur-Rehman Para gets bail in militancy case

"Finally, after almost two years, Waheed Para gets bail and I hope he walks out as a free man soon. Would like to thank his lawyer Shariq for fighting his case with such conviction and determination," Mehbooba Mufti tweeted.

Srinagar: A division bench of the High court of Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh on Wednesday granted bail to People's Democratic Party (PDP) leader Waheed-ur-Rehman Para in a militancy case. The court set aside the trial court's decision while granting bail to Para. The High Court bench had conducted a hearing of the case on April 27 and May 13 and on May 21, the arguments were completed and the matter was reserved for orders today.

PDP President Mehbooba Mufti welcomed the development hoping Para will soon walk as a free man. "Finally, after almost two years, Waheed Para gets bail and I hope he walks out as a free man soon. Would like to thank his lawyer Shariq for fighting his case with such conviction and determination," she tweeted. Para was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on 25 November 2020 for his alleged links with the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen outfit.

In 2021, a special NIA court twice rejected Para's bail application, terming the charges against him "serious and heinous." The PDP leader approached the High Court after his bail application was rejected for the second time by the special NIA court. Pertinently, Section 21 of the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008 provides an opportunity to appeal against any order of the special court granting or denying bail. While Sub-section 2 directs that such appeals be heard by a two-judge bench of the High Court. However, an appeal under this section must be filed within 30 days.

However, Para appealed to the High Court more than two months after his bail was rejected, resulting in a 33-day delay. However, the court, after considering the submissions made by Para's counsel, allowed the application. In February, while the court was working virtually due to the COVID lockdown, Para's counsel drew the court's attention to the undertrial's "deteriorating health."

He said: "... there is no treatment for him." However, a lawyer representing the state immediately disagreed. The court, noting the urgency presented by Para's lawyer, decided to hear the case immediately after four days. At a subsequent hearing, the court ordered the lawyer to be physically present and also directed the UT administration to file a report on Para's health condition before the court.

Due to various factors, including lack of time, the final arguments did not begin until Chief Justice Pankaj Mittal constituted a special division bench comprising Justice Sanjeev Kumar and Justice Vinod Chatterjee. Following this, a hearing in the case started in April.