Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the Supreme Court on Thursday that Tihar Jail in Delhi is equipped with a fully functional courtroom, including video conferencing facilities if needed.
This follows the Supreme Court’s suggestion on November 21 to explore the possibility of setting up a makeshift courtroom in jail for conducting the trial of terror convict Yasin Malik, who is facing charges related to abduction and murder.
Mehta assured the bench, led by Justices Abhay S. Oka and Augustine George Masih, that a functioning court exists within the jail, where proceedings have already been conducted in the past. He also updated the court about two new applications filed—one for modification and the other for transferring the case.
The Supreme Court has issued notices to the relevant respondents and made the other co-accused in the case parties. The matter has been scheduled for further hearing in December.
CBI’s Plea and Security Concerns
The update came during the hearing of a plea filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is challenging a Jammu court’s order requiring Malik’s physical presence during the trial. Mehta explained that the CBI is concerned about the security risks of transporting Malik, currently incarcerated in Tihar Jail, to Jammu and Kashmir for the proceedings. He also presented evidence of Malik’s association with terror mastermind Hafiz Saeed, emphasizing that Malik is not an ordinary criminal.
In its plea, the CBI had requested permission to implead all the accused in the case as respondents. The Supreme Court had earlier stayed the Jammu court’s order, which had issued a production warrant for Malik’s appearance in two separate cases involving the killing of four IAF personnel and the abduction of Rubaiya Sayeed, the daughter of former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, in 1989.
Security Issues and Previous Concerns
Tushar Mehta had previously expressed concerns about Malik’s security and the potential risks of his presence in the Supreme Court, writing to the Home Secretary about the possibility of a security lapse. The letter raised alarms about the risks of Malik either escaping, being forcibly taken, or being harmed.
Mehta referenced an order by the Ministry of Home Affairs under Section 268 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which restricts the removal of Yasin Malik from jail for security reasons. The Supreme Court will hear the case again next week as the legal proceedings continue.
