Srinagar: PDP president Mehbooba Mufti Thursday said the “disparity” in granting paroles by the courts “exposes a troubling inconsistency and bias” in the country’s justice system.
“Tragic and puzzling that Umar Khalid had to wait five years just to get a 13-day parole to attend his sister’s wedding while convicts like Gurmeet Singh guilty of rape and murder walk in and out on repeated paroles. The contrast is glaring,” she said in a post on X.
Mufti’s remarks came after a Delhi court granted interim bail from December 16 to 29 to former Jawaharlal Nehru University student Umar Khalid to attend his sister’s wedding.
Khalid is an accused in the case regarding the larger conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots. He has been imprisoned for over five years and has consistently been denied bail.
“This disparity exposes a troubling inconsistency and bias in our justice system,” Mufti added.
Her daughter and PDP leader Iltija Mufti also questioned the rationale behind granting an interim bail for only 13 days, asking if it were to give a sense of justice after Khalid’s five-year incarceration.
“Umar Khalid (who has been) behind bars over five years without conviction under UAPA is granted bail for THIRTEEN days to attend his sister’s wedding. Does one pretend this is justice? Effusively grateful to Milords. Or does truth in the guise of sarcasm constitute contempt of court?” Iltija Mufti said in a post.
Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai granted interim relief to Khalid.
The judge directed the accused to furnish a personal bond of Rs 20,000 and two sureties of like amount.
