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Can release Abu Salem on 2-day parole, he has to pay escort charges: Govt to Bombay HC

The Bombay High Court hearing Salem's plea seeking 14-day “emergency parole” citing his elder brother's death. On January 6, the court had sought to know state's response to the plea.

2 min readMumbaiJan 13, 2026 08:18 PM IST

The government said that Abu Salem cannot be released without police escort as he was an “international criminal” and he has to bear the escort charges.

The government said that Salem cannot be released without police escort as he was an “international criminal” and he has to bear the escort charges. (File Photo)

The Maharashtra government’s prison authorities on Tuesday told the Bombay High Court that it can release gangster Abu Salem, convicted in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, on two-day emergency parole to meet his family over elder brother’s death.

The government said that Salem cannot be released without police escort as he was an “international criminal” and he has to bear the escort charges.

A bench of Justices Ajey S Gadkari and Shyam C Chandak was hearing Salem’s plea seeking 14-day “emergency parole” citing his elder brother’s death. On January 6, the HC had sought to know state’s response to the plea.

On Tuesday, in-charge Chief Public Prosecutor Mankunwar Deshmukh, for state prison authorities, submitted that a decision was taken to release the petitioner on emergency parole for two days and he has to pay escort charges. Deshmukh said Salem is an “international criminal” and he cannot be released without escort Advocate Farhana Shah, representing Salem, however, said that her client has to travel to Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh and two-day period was not enough considering the travel time.

Also Read | Explained: The Abu Salem extradition case, its background, and what SC has said

The judges asked the state government lawyer to file a proper reply enumerating state’s apprehensions and details of escort charges by next week and adjourned the hearing.

Salem was placed under arrest on November 24, 2005, and was convicted in the case in September, 2017.

The Supreme Court in July, 2022 had observed that the central government was bound to advise the President to exercise powers of remission to release Salem after he completes 25 years in prison, in accordance with the sovereign assurance given by the Indian government to Portugal at the time of his extradition.

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Salem had filed another plea last year seeking remission of his sentence and premature release from jail.