The Supreme Court on Thursday sought a response from the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on a plea filed by Kashmiri separatist leader Shabir Ahmed Shah challenging the Delhi High Court’s order denying him bail in a terror funding case.
A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, while issuing notice to the NIA, declined to grant Shah interim bail despite his counsel highlighting his deteriorating health condition. Senior advocate Colin Gonsalves, appearing for Shah, urged the court to consider interim relief, stating that the petitioner was “very sick.”
The matter has been posted for hearing after two weeks.
Shah had approached the apex court against the June 12, 2024 order of the Delhi High Court, which rejected his bail plea. The high court had observed that the possibility of Shah engaging in similar unlawful activities or attempting to influence witnesses could not be ruled out.
Shah was arrested by the NIA on June 4, 2019, in connection with the case. The agency had in 2017 registered a case against 12 individuals for allegedly conspiring to raise and collect funds for activities including stone-pelting, damaging public property, and waging war against the Government of India.
