The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected the bail plea of four convicts, including that of prime-accused Tiger Memon’s sister-in-law Rubina Suleiman Memon, who were awarded life imprisonment by the designated TADA court for their involvement in the 1993 serial blasts in Mumbai. Apart from Rubina, the bail applications of Sardar Shahwali Khan, Muzamil Umar Kadri and Zamir Sayed Ismail Kadri, who were held guilty under TADA for abetting the terrorist act, were also rejected by the court.However, it provided relief to seven others — Khalil Ahmed Sayed Ali Nazir, Shahnawaj Hajwani, Sikkander Hajwani, Issak Mohammad Hajwani, Mujib Sharif Parkar, Sudhanwa Sadashiv Talavedkar and Ehsan Mohammed Tufel Qureshi — who were sentenced to lesser terms.A Bench, headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan, also directed setting up a medical board to assess the mental health of Yusuf Memon, another convict from the Memon family. Earlier, Rubina Memon was given life sentence by the special court for conspiracy and abetment in connection with the blasts. On Tuesday, the apex court rejected the submission of senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi that Rubina was in Dubai before the blasts and she was not aware that her father-in-law had transferred in her name a Maruti van allegedly used for carrying explosives.“The car was transferred to your (Rubina’s) name in 1990. You came to Mumbai several times after that,” the Bench, also comprising Justices R V Raveendran and J M Panchal, said, adding that “the car was used in a nefarious activity”. “No court will accept this defence,” the Bench observed, reminding the counsel that for transferring the car, her signature would have been obtained.The CBI, which opposed Rubina’s plea, contended that hers was not a case for grant of bail. Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramaniam, appearing for the investigating agency, said Singhvi had not spoken about the Pakistani passport used by her after the blasts. “She had a Pakistani passport which does not contain the date of her entry into Dubai. It was issued in the name of Fatima which she used to visit Bangkok and Dubai and there was no entry (in it related to the date) of arrival,” the ASG said.On the other hand, Yusuf, who was also sentenced to life imprisonment for allowing his flat to be used for hatching the conspiracy, has sought to be released on bail contending that he’s mentally unfit. Senior advocates Harsh Salve and Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for him said he has been suffering from acute schizophrenia and was looked after in the jail by another brother who despite being granted bail had preferred to stay inside.To ascertain its veracity, the Bench sought medical opinion and directed that the report be placed on the next date of hearing.The apex court had earlier granted bail to Yusuf’s brother Essa Memon, who was also awarded life imprisonment. The court had granted his plea that he had already spent a prolonged period of 13 years in jail as an undertrial as well as a convict. The TADA court had convicted 100 persons for their involvement in the serial blasts, which had killed 257 people and injured or maimed 574 others in 1993.
