NEW DELHI: Gangster and 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict Abu Salem suffered a setback in the Supreme Court on Thursday, with the court dismissing his plea seeking immediate release on the ground that he had already completed 25 years in prison.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta upheld the Bombay High Court’s order, holding that Salem’s plea was premature. The court said his 25-year prison term would be completed only in November 2030.
Salem had argued that his period of incarceration should be calculated from the date of his arrest in Portugal. However, Indian courts have treated 2005, when he was extradited to India, as the starting point for calculating his sentence.
Extradition terms at centre of dispute
Salem was arrested in Lisbon, Portugal, in 2002 and extradited to India in 2005. As part of the extradition process, India had assured Portugal that he would not be sentenced to death or imprisoned for more than 25 years.
The Centre had earlier told the Supreme Court that, in keeping with India’s commitment to Portugal, it would recommend Salem’s release to the President after he completes 25 years of imprisonment. The government, however, maintained that the period had not yet been completed.
The Supreme Court has now rejected Salem’s claim that his prison term had already crossed the 25-year mark.
Convicted in Mumbai blast, builder murder cases
Salem is serving a life sentence for his role in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts, which killed 257 people. He was also convicted in the 1995 murder of Mumbai builder Pradeep Jain.
Salem was arrested in Portugal along with actor Monica Bedi in connection with a fake passport case after the two had fled India.
