Delhi High Court Denies Bail To Former PFI Chairman E Abubacker, Says Prima Facie Commission Of UAPA Offences

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday dismissed the plea moved by E Abubacker, former chairman of Popular Front of India (PFI), seeking bail in the UAPA case being probed by the National Investigation Agency.

A division bench comprising Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Manoj Jain dismissed the appeal moved by Abubacker who sought bail on the merits as well as medical grounds.

Abubacker is presently in judicial custody in the case. He was arrested by the agency during a massive crackdown on the banned organisation in 2022.

The court observed the material collected by the investigating agency showed that there is prima facie commission of offences falling under Chapter-IV and Chapter-VI of UAPA and such material cannot be disregarded at the preliminary stage.

“Thus, in view of the material collected by the investigating agency and the statements of witnesses recorded during the investigation, it cannot be said that the allegations were merely to the extent of ideological propagation of the activities of PFI. It was certainly much more than that,” the court said.

It added that though PFI has been declared to be unlawful association and not a terrorist organisation but the activities of such unlawful association need to be cautiously fathomed and weighed up.

The bench further observed that the witnesses statements showed that objective of the alleged weapon-training by PFI was with the idea of overthrowing the democratically elected government to replace the Constitution of India with a Caliphate Shariya Law.

“The planning of targeted killing of Hindu leaders and attacking the security forces and establishing Caliphate by 2047 would clearly indicate that the target was to challenge the „unity and sovereignty of India‟ and not merely to „overthrow the government‟,” the court said.

It added: “We are also not impressed with the argument of the appellant that he was merely acting in furtherance of ideology of the organization. If such ideology smacks of malafide and is replete with conspiracy related to terrorist acts, adhering to the same, certainly, would also be punitive.”

It further said that Abubacker's incarceration was less than two years, case is at the verge of ascertainment of charges and there was nothing to indicate infringement of his fundamental rights.

“We do understand that Parkinson‟s disease is a progressive disorder which gradually affects the nervous system but fact remains that adequate directions have already been given by the learned Trial Court in the impugned order and as per jail report, appellant, himself, is not interested in getting admitted in AIIMS, New Delhi. Needless to emphasize, AIIMS is one of the best and most sought-after medical facility in the country,” the court said.

Dismissing the appeal, the bench said that it is expected that the Trial Court will adjudicate on charges without getting swayed by the observations.

Last year, Abubacker was permitted to withdraw his appeal challenging the order of the trial court rejecting his application seeking bail on medical grounds. He was then granted liberty to approach the trial court seeking appropriate relief in view of the fact that the chargesheet was filed by NIA.

Earlier, the court had directed the Medical Superintendent of Tihar Jail to ensure that efficacious medical treatment is provided to Abubacker on a regular basis. However, it had refused to entertain Abubacker's prayer seeking his transfer to house arrest from Tihar Jail on account of his health condition.

Abubacker is suffering from multiple ailments including a rare type of oesophagus cancer, parkinson's disease, along with hypertension, diabetes and loss of vision, his appeal before the court states.

The FIR alleges that various PFI members were conspiring and collecting funds from India and abroad for committing terrorist acts in multiple states. It also alleges that the PFI members are involved in radicalizing and recruiting Muslim youth for proscribed organisations like ISIS.

The FIR was registered under section 120B and 153Aof the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and section 17, 18, 18B, 20, 22B 38 and 39 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.

Counsel for Appellant: Ms. Nitya Ramakrishnan, Senior Advocate with Mr. Adit S. Pujari, Mr. A. Nowfal, Mr. Shaikh Saipan, Ms. Aprajita Sinha, Mr. Shaurya Mittal, Ms. Mantika Vohra, Mr. Shereef K.A. and Mr. Arif Hussain, Advocates

Counsel for Respondent: Mr. Rahul Tyagi, SPP with Mr. Vikas Walia, Mr. Sangeet Sibou, Ms. Priya Rai, Mr. Jatin, Mr. Mathew M. Philip, Mr. Durga Das, Mr. Harsh Sehrawat, Advocates

Title: ABOOBACKER E. v. National Investigation Agency

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Del) 645

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