New Delhi, Jan 13: Gangster Abu Salem has approached the Supreme Court seeking his release in the 1993 Bombay blasts case, claiming that he has completed 25 years of imprisonment in line with the court’s 2022 ruling on his extradition from Portugal, reports Bar & Bench.
On January 12, a Bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta asked Salem to place on record the relevant Maharashtra prison rules on remission and listed the matter for further hearing on February 9.
The court was hearing his challenge to a Bombay High Court order that had refused him interim relief while admitting his plea. Salem argues that by counting his period as an undertrial, his post-conviction custody and the remission earned for good conduct, he had completed over 25 years in prison by April 2025. The dispute relates to India’s assurance to Portugal in 2002 that Salem would not be imprisoned for more than 25 years if extradited. In 2022, the Supreme Court had held that the Centre must ensure his release after completion of that period, subject to applicable rules.
