Bombay High Court Grants Bail to PFI Member Mohammed Khan in UAPA Case

The Bombay High Court has granted bail to Mohammed Iqbal Ibrahim Khan, who was arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, observing that witness statements failed to establish the offences charged against him and that the trial is unlikely to conclude anytime soon.

A Division Bench comprising Justices Sarang Kotwal and Ranjitsinha Raja Bhonsale issued the order after reviewing the evidence submitted by the prosecution. The court noted that there was hardly any material to point directly to Khan's involvement in the alleged unlawful activities.

The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested Khan in September 2022, booking him under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the UAPA. He has been in judicial custody since his arrest.

Opposing the bail plea, the prosecution argued that Khan was an active member of the Popular Front of India (PFI). Investigators claimed that Khan and other co-accused organized meetings across Mumbai between February and June 2022 to conspire against the Government of India. The prosecution also cited a video found on Khan’s mobile phone demonstrating how to make petrol bombs.

However, the High Court termed the witness statements recorded by investigators as "innocuous." The judges observed that while the statements indicated Khan’s membership in the PFI, they did not make out the specific offences alleged against him.

Regarding the video clip retrieved from Khan's phone, the bench observed that although the footage was present on the device, Khan had neither forwarded it to anyone else nor instigated any person to use the technique.

The court also took note of the slow pace of the proceedings. Charges in the case were framed in March this year, but no witnesses have been examined to date. With the prosecution intending to examine at least 90 witnesses, the bench remarked that the trial was not likely to get over within a reasonable time, ruling that Khan was entitled to bail.