Tihar Jail
Four Tihar jail officials suspended over J&K separatist leader Yasin Malik's appearance in SC without court order
New Delhi: The Department of Prisons has suspended four Tihar jail officials in connection with the physical appearance of jailed JKLF leader Yasin Malik in the Supreme Court, media reports said.
Malik, who is serving life imprisonment following his conviction in a terror funding case, appeared in a packed courtroom.
His presence was a matter of surprise as the court had not issued any order to produce him before it.
He was brought in a prison van to the high-security court premises and escorted by four security personnel.
In a statement on Saturday, the Department of Delhi Prisons said the physical production of Malik before the Supreme Court on Friday, the Prisons Department has suspended one deputy superintendent, two assistant superintendents, and one head warder on Friday night.
They were found to be prima facie responsible based on preliminary inquiry, the statement said.
"A detailed probe is being conducted by DIG Tihar to identify any other officials who may also be responsible for the serious lapse," it added.
Prison authorities announced that Deputy Inspector General (Prisons-Headquarters) Rajiv Singh will investigate the oversight and identify the responsible officials, submitting a report to the Director General (Prisons) within three days, saidmedia reports.
During a court appearance, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta expressed surprise at Malik's presence, stating that there is a specific procedure for high-risk convicts to personally argue their case in the Supreme Court.
During the hearing of an appeal filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against the 2022 trial court order in the Rubaiya Sayeed kidnapping case, Malik appeared in the Supreme Court. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, surprised by Malik's presence, raised the issue of permission for high-risk convicts to argue their case personally.
However, the bench, led by Justice Kant, clarified that no such permission or order had been granted to Malik to argue his case in person.
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