Calcutta High Court Grants Bail To Man Imprisoned On Suspicion Of Being Associated With Banned Bangladeshi Terrorist Outfit

The Calcutta High Court has granted bail to a Bangladeshi national, who was arrested in 2016, on the suspicion of being associated with the banned terrorist organisation Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB).

A division bench of Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Gaurang Kanth allowed the bail application moved by Abdul Kalim alias Azad.

It was stated that the petitioner was in custody for more than eight years, and there was no possibility of the trial concluding soon.

State counsel submitted that the petitioner had been convicted in the 2014 Khagragarh blast case, investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and was sentenced to eight years of imprisonment. It was alleged that there were links found between the JMB and the blast in Khagragarh.

Petitioner's counsel argued that the eight-year sentence had ended and that there was no grounds for the state authorities to continue holding the petitioner in the present case.

While the court noted that allegations of being associated with a banned terrorist organisation were serious in nature, it also said that no overt act had been attributed to the petitioner and he was sentenced based on an uncorroborated statement by a co-accused.

It was also noted that since he had already served his eight-year sentence, even if he was sentenced in the present case, the two sentences would have run concurrently.

Accordingly, the court granted bail to the petitioner.

Case: ABDUL KALIM @ AZAD @ ABDUL KALAM VS STATE OF WEST BENGAL

Case No: CRM (DB)/3400/2024

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Cal) 236