Rashid Engineer Granted Interim Bail In Terror Funding Case For Election Campaign

Baramulla MP Rashid Engineer, currently in Tihar Jail for a terror funding case, received interim bail from the Patiala House Court until October 2. Rashid had sought bail to campaign for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections. His brother, Khurshid Ahmed, is running for the Langate seat in North Kashmir, representing the Awami Ittehad Party. Rashid, also known as Sheikh Abdul Rashid, has previously served as an MLA from Langate and defeated Omar Abdullah in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Baramulla.

Previous Legal Developments

The court had earlier granted Rashid custodial parole on July 5 to take his oath as MP after winning the Baramulla seat. He has been in jail since 2019 after his arrest by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in connection to a 2017 terror funding case. His name surfaced during the interrogation of Kashmiri businessman Zahoor Watali, who was arrested for allegedly funding terrorist groups in the Kashmir Valley.

Charges and Allegations

In 2022, the Patiala House Court framed charges against Rashid and several others, including Hafiz Saeed and Syed Salahuddin, under terror funding allegations. According to the NIA, with the support of Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI, organizations like Lashkar-e-Taiba, Hizbul Mujahideen, and Jaish-e-Mohammed carried out attacks on civilians and security forces in Jammu and Kashmir. The NIA claims these groups were part of a larger network aiming to destabilize the region through violence and separatist activities.

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