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New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has requested responses from Tihar jail authorities and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) regarding a plea by senior All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leader Nayeem Ahmad Khan. The plea challenges the withdrawal of call and “e-mulaqat” facilities in Tihar Jail.
According to a statement by Kashmir Media Service, Justice Sachin Datta has issued notices to the NIA and Tihar prison authorities, seeking their stand on the matter. Advocate Tara Narula, representing Khan, argued that the telephone facilities were “arbitrarily” withdrawn starting November 2023, citing that the NIA did not provide a no-objection certificate.
Khan, who was arrested in July 2017 and is currently an undertrial prisoner in a case related to the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, questioned the NIA counsel regarding the denial of the facility. The court noted that sufficient safeguards, such as call recording, were in place. The NIA counsel stated that the agency would submit its response.
In his plea, Khan contended that there was no justification for denying him the facilities, which are available to other inmates under the Delhi Prison Rules. He mentioned that during his previous incarceration at Central Jail 8/9, Tihar Jail, he was permitted to use the IPCS and e-mulaqat services. However, upon his transfer to Central Jail 3, Tihar Jail, at the end of 2023, these facilities were revoked.
The plea further alleged that the NIA did not provide any reason for refusing the no-objection certificate, leading to an “arbitrary and unreasonable blanket restriction” on his fundamental rights to communicate with family members once a week. The petitioner has requested a directive to fully restore the facilities. The court has scheduled the next hearing for March 18.
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