HC tells Salem to approach apex court

The Bombay High Court today asked extradited gangster Abu Salem, accused in the 1993 bomb blasts case, to approach the Supreme Court to challenge the framing of charges and separation of trial in the case.

The prosecution said that as per the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act, appeal in TADA cases can lie only with the Supreme Court. While asking Salem to approach the apex court, a Division Bench of Justices JN Patel and Roshan Dalvi also observed that the special TADA court ought to have pronounced the verdict in the 1993 bomb blasts case by now.

Salem had filed an appeal in the High Court against the charges framed against him in the case and also challenged separation ofhis trial from the rest of the accused.