New Delhi, Aug 11: The Delhi High Court on Monday sought separatist leader Yasin Malik’s response on a plea filed by the National Investigation Agency seeking death penalty for him in a terror funding case.
A bench of Justices Vivek Chaudhary and Shalinder Kaur granted four weeks to Malik to file his response to the NIA’s petition.
The court posted the hearing for November 10.
Malik, who previously sought to argue in-person against NIA’s plea seeking the enhancement, was supposed to appear virtually from jail but wasn’t produced.
The Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chief (JKLF) is lodged in Tihar jail where he is serving a life term in the case.
The high court noted that neither Malik was produced virtually in the proceedings from jail nor he filed his reply to NIA’s plea in pursuance to the court’s August 9, 2024 order.
On August 9, Malik was directed to be produced virtually and not physically due to security threats.
On Monday, the bench directed the jail authorities to produce him virtually on November 10.
Malik last year turned down the court’s suggestion to appoint a lawyer on his behalf and said he wished to argue the case in-person.
On May 29, 2023, the high court issued notice to Malik on the NIA’s plea seeking death penalty.
Subsequently, jail authorities filed an application seeking permission for his virtual appearance on grounds that he was a “very high-risk prisoner” and it was imperative to not physically produce him in court to maintain public order and safety.
