‘Bail Application Under Stringent Law Like UAPA Should Not Be Dismissed Due To Technical Mistakes’: Riots Accused Tells Delhi Court

[16 Septemebr 2021]
Seeking bail in the Delhi Riots larger conspiracy case, riots accused Gulfisha Fatima has told a Delhi Court that bail application under stringent law like Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act should not be dismissed merely due to some technical mistakes. Advocate Mehmood Pracha told Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat that sec. 16(3) of National Investigation Agency Act gives a hybrid power to the Special Court to deal with bail application both under sec. 437 CrPC and 439 CrPC. The development came after Special Public Prosecutor Amit Prasad, while objecting to the maintainability of bail plea filed by co-accused Ishrat Jahan in the case, submitted that application filed under Section 437 must have been moved in place of Section 439 of CrPC, primarily because the Court hearing the plea is a special court designated under UAPA Act and therefore exercises all powers that are before the Court of Magistrate within the rigours of Section 437 of CrPC.