Srinagar: In a significant development, the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has admitted a writ petition urging the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to ensure consular access to Kashmiri engineer, Abdul Rafi Baba, who is jailed in Saudi Arabia on cyber crime and terror charges, as mandated under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 1963.
Baba, a 36-year-old Kashmiri networking engineer, has been languishing in a Saudi Arabian jail for the past five years.
Admitting the case (WP(C): 303/2025) on Wednesday, a single bench of Justice Rahul Bharti directed an associate of Deputy Solicitor General of India (DSGI) Advocate Tahir Majid Shamsi to submit a status report on Baba’s case before the next hearing.
Advocate Shamsi's associate assured the court that all relevant facts related to Rafi's case would be submitted before the next hearing, scheduled for March 4, 2025.
On Monday, Rafi's wife Mariyam Ali along with her father-in-law, approached the court on his behalf, seeking protection of his liberty and legal assistance.
In her petition—filed by her legal team, including Advocate Shaheryar, Advocate Wani Umer, Advocate Abdul Manan, Advocate F.A. Lone, and Advocate Rahil Habib—she claimed that the petitioner is "a law-abiding citizen who has been detained in Saudi Arabia since 2020 under uncertain circumstances."
Speaking to ETV Bharat, Advocate Shaheryar said, "The court has admitted the petition and sought a detailed report from the MEA regarding Rafi's trial and other case details. The intent is to provide legal assistance to the family."
According to the petition, Rafi had been working as an engineer in Saudi Arabia since 2014. His family was never formally informed about the charges against him. They made numerous efforts to reach out to the Government of India, including writing letters and emails to the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Lieutenant Governor's administration in Jammu & Kashmir, seeking help for his legal representation and release.
The case has gained media attention, prompting intervention from civil society and a Member of Parliament, who have urged authorities to expedite efforts for his release.
The petitioners—Rafi’s wife and father—have requested the court to direct the respondents to ensure that Saudi authorities provide consular access and that Rafi is represented by competent legal counsel.
Supporting documents submitted with the petition include Rafi’s passport, character certificate, job offer letter, Saudi residence permit, a grievance lodged on the MADAD portal, an email from the JK Students Association (dated February 2, 2025), and a tweet from a Member of Parliament from Srinagar.
As earlier reported by ETV Bharat, Rafi had been working at King Faisal University in Hofuf, in Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ahsa region. However, in early 2020, his life took an unexpected turn when he was picked up from his workplace and later arrested by Saudi police. His family first learned of his arrest on March 1, 2020, and since then, they have been struggling to obtain information about his well-being and legal status.
Earlier this month, the Jammu and Kashmir Students' Association claimed that Baba had been sentenced to 31 years in jail on charges of “cyber related crimes concerned with terror activities” and for “circulating some objectionable videos on social media”.
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