1993 bomb blasts: convict moves Bombay High Court for furlough

Mumbai, Aug 8 (UNI) A convict in the 1993 serial bomb blasts today moved the Bombay High Court, seeking permission to grant him 'Furlough' of 14 days.

The plea, moved by Ashraf Ur Rehman, who is sentenced to life imprisonment by TADA court, stated that it is his constitutional right to get a holiday of 14 days in a year.

It came up for hearing before a division bench of Justice Bilal Nazki and Justice Ashutosh Kumbhkoni today.

The Maharashtra goverment, however, opposed the plea on the ground that the convict's release on furlough will create law and order problem, as he is convicted under the draconian Terrorism and Disruptive Activities (TADA) Act and hence the plea be rejected.

The bench then asked Public Prosecutor S Pai whether the state has framed any guidelines whereby those convicted under the act should not be given the benefit of the furlough as given to the other convicts convicted under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Criminal Procedure Code (CrPc).

The high court directed the state to furnish the details and adjourned the hearing till August 11.

Rehman has made the application under the Prisoner's Act, which allows a convict to get 14 days holiday from the jail after seeking the court's permission. His lawyer Aysha Ansari made the application to consider the request both on humantarian grounds as well as merit.

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