New Delhi, June 22 (HS). Delhi's Patiala House Court has postponed the hearing on the demand to allow Abdul Rashid Sheikh, accused in the terror funding case in Jammu and Kashmir and newly elected Lok Sabha member from Baramulla, to take oath as a Lok Sabha member. The court ordered the next hearing on this matter on July 1.
Today, a demand was made in the court to give time to file a reply on the petition, on which the court ordered the next hearing on July 01. While hearing Abdul Rashid's petition, the court had issued a notice to the NIA on June 6. Abdul Rashid defeated former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah from Baramulla seat as an independent candidate in the Lok Sabha elections 2024 by a margin of more than two lakh votes. Rashid is currently lodged in Tihar Jail in Delhi. Rashid was arrested by the NIA in 2016.
On March 16, 2022, the Patiala House Court had ordered framing of charges against Hafiz Saeed, Syed Salahuddin, Yasin Malik, Shabbir Shah and other accused including Masrat Alam, Abdul Rashid Sheikh, Zahoor Ahmed Watali, Bitta Karate, Aftab Ahmed Shah, Avtar Ahmed Shah, Nayeem Khan, Bashir Ahmed Butt alias Peer Saifullah. According to the NIA, with the support of Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI, organizations like Lashkar-e-Taiba, Hizbul Mujahideen, JKLF, Jaish-e-Mohammed carried out attacks and violence on civilians, security forces in Jammu and Kashmir. In 1993, the All Party Hurriyat Conference was established to carry out separatist activities.
According to the NIA, Hafiz Saeed, along with the leaders of the Hurriyat Conference, transacted funds through hawala and other channels to carry out terrorist activities. They used this money to spread unrest in the valley, attack security forces, burn schools and damage public property. After receiving information about this from the Home Ministry, the NIA registered a case under sections 120B, 121, 121A of the IPC and sections 13, 16, 17, 18, 20, 38, 39 and 40 of the UAPA.