New Delhi, May 29 (). The Delhi High Court has sent notice to Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Yasin Malik in connection with a plea by the NIA seeking death penalty in a terror funding case, comparing him with slain Al Qaeda terrorist Osama Bin Laden. Has been asked to give.
A division bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Talwant Singh also issued a production warrant for Malik and listed the matter for further hearing on August 9.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the National Investigation Agency (NIA), said during the hearing that Malik had escaped death penalty by very cleverly confessing his crime.
The wider issue is troubling us that any terrorist would come, carry out terrorist activities and the court would say that because he has pleaded guilty, we are giving life sentence, the Solicitor General argued. Everyone will come here and plead guilty to escape the trial because they know that if the trial goes on, the only outcome is hanging.
To this Justice Mridul orally said: It may be his constitutional right. Simplicity is not only the constitutional right of the lawyers, it is also the constitutional right of the litigants.
Mehta then compared Malik to terrorist Osama bin Laden and said: By this standard, if Osama bin Laden was tried here, he would be allowed to plead guilty and then I am debating the question of limitation. Would.
Justice Mridul said he (the court) cannot compare Malik with bin Laden as bin Laden was never tried, and refused to comment on it.
Mehta also argued that Malik was involved in terrorist and separatist activities and the death penalty should be awarded considering the case as the rarest of rare case.
The Court ordered, on the ground that Yasin Malik is the sole respondent in this appeal and has been convicted of a charge punishable with death under Section 121 inter se, IPC, we, the Jail Superintendent issue notice to him through
The High Court has also sought the Law Commission’s recommendations on the death penalty for Yasin.
A special NIA court had in May 2022 sentenced Malik to life imprisonment in a 2017 terror funding case.
Special Judge Praveen Singh awarded the sentence under relevant sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, which will run for life.
Last year, the sentence in the terror funding case was pronounced in the Patiala House Court amid tight security.
During a trial court hearing last year, Malik had said, “I will not beg for anything.” The matter is before this court and I leave it to the court to decide.
He had told the court, “If I have been involved in any terrorist activity or violence in 28 years, if Indian intelligence proves it, I will also retire from politics.” I will accept the death sentence.. I have worked with seven Prime Ministers.
The NIA had told the court during the hearing that the accused was responsible for the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley. The probe agency had also argued for death penalty for Malik.
On the other hand, the amicus curiae sought life imprisonment as the minimum punishment in the case.
Malik had earlier confessed his crime in this case. In the last hearing, he told the court that he was under sections 16 (terrorist activity), 17 (raising funds for terrorist activities), 18 (conspiracy to commit terrorist act), and 20 (being a member of a terrorist gang or organization) of the UAPA and Indian Will not challenge the charges framed against him under sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 124-A (sedition) of the Penal Code.
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