The Delhi High Court on Monday granted separatist leader Yasin Malik four weeks to respond to the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) plea seeking enhancement of his sentence from life imprisonment to the death penalty in a 2017 terror funding case.
A division bench of Justices Vivek Chaudhary and Shalinder Kaur directed that Malik, lodged in Tihar jail, be produced virtually for the next hearing on November 10. The court noted that despite its August 9, 2024 order, Malik neither appeared virtually nor filed his reply.
Malik, chief of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), is serving a life term after a trial court in May 2022 convicted him under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the IPC. He had pleaded guilty to all charges, including those relating to terrorism and conspiracy to wage war against India.
The NIA, in its appeal, argued that Malik’s crimes were of such gravity that they warranted the maximum punishment. It contended that allowing terrorists to escape the death penalty merely by pleading guilty would undermine the sentencing framework and embolden others to avoid trials.
The trial court, while declining to impose capital punishment, had observed that Malik’s acts “struck at the heart of the idea of India” and aimed at violently separating Jammu and Kashmir from the Union, but it considered life imprisonment sufficient.
Malik had earlier refused to appoint legal counsel, insisting on arguing the case himself. The high court had ordered his virtual, rather than physical, production due to his classification as a “very high-risk prisoner” and related security concerns.
The matter will be taken up again on November 10, when Malik is expected to present his arguments against the NIA’s plea for the death penalty.
