Ensure Medical Treatment Is Provided To Yasin Malik In Jail Hospital: Delhi High Court To Tihar Jail Superintendent

The Delhi High Court on Friday directed the Tihar Jail Superintendent to ensure that medical treatment is duly provided in the jail hospital to Kashmiri separatist leader Yasin Malik, convicted in a terror funding case.

Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta passed the order in a plea moved by Yasin Malik seeking appropriate directions upon the Union Government and jail authorities to refer him for “necessary medical treatment” to AIIMS or any other hospital physically as he is suffering from cardiac and kidney-related ailments.

Union Government's counsel, Rajat Nair, opposed the petition and raised a preliminary objection, saying that Malik's petition suffered from “serious suppression of facts.”

He said that a medical board was constituted by AIIMS, however, Malik denied the treatment by the Board.

Nair further told the court that Malik does not require in-house treatment by getting admission to AIIMS and is to be examined as an OPD patient which can be done in jail. 

He said that all necessary arrangements for Malik's medical treatment can be made in the prison as he cannot be permitted to be admitted physically to the hospital being a “high-risk prisoner.”

On the other hand, Malik's counsel told the court that he has been treated by different doctors (jail doctors) for the last two years and the change in doctors (medical board of AIIMS) may affect his health.

The court then adjourned the matter to February 14 and sought instructions from Malik's counsel if he wanted to be treated by AIIMS doctors or other doctors of his choice.

“In the meantime, the Superintendent of Tihar Jail is directed to ensure that any treatment required by the petitioner is duly provided to him at the jail hospital…,” the court said.

Malik was awarded a life sentence in the case by the trial court in May 2022. Last year, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed a criminal writ petition seeking the death penalty for him. The same is pending adjudication before a division bench.

Malik had pleaded guilty in the case and did not contest the charges against him. While awarding him a life sentence, the Special Judge had observed that the crime failed the test of the rarest of rare cases as held by the Apex Court.

The judge had also rejected Malik's submission that he had followed the Gandhian principle of non-violence and was spearheading a peaceful non-violent struggle.

The court had framed charges against Malik and various others under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) in the case, in March 2022.

Others who were charged and claimed trial were Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, Shabbir Ahmad Shah, Hizbul Mujahideen Chief Salahuddin, Rashid Engineer, Zahoor Ahmad Shah Watali, Shahid-ul-Islam, Altaf Ahmad Shah @ Fantoosh, Nayeem Khan, Farooq Ahmad Dar alias Bitta Karate.

However, the Court had discharged three men namely Kamran Yusuf, Javed Ahmad Bhatt and Syeda Aasiya Firdous Andrabi.

Title: Yasin Malik v. Union of India & Ors.

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Del) 124