Delhi court grants bail to three Muslim men in al-Qaeda training module case

A Delhi court on Monday (February 17, 2025) granted bail to three Muslim men accused of being part of an al-Qaeda training module, running in Ranchi, after the Delhi Police failed to find evidence against them.

A total of 12 persons were initially arrested in the case from various locations by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police in association with police of Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, in August last year.

The police claimed that the accused were part of an AQ training module whose operations were led by Ishtiyaq, a resident of Ranchi, who was aspiring to declare Khilafat and execute serious terrorist activities within the country. The members of the module have received indoctrination and weapons training at various locations, the police had said as they raided one of those locations in Bhiwadi, Rajasthan where the accused persons were taking weapon training to conspire against the country.

The police, earlier this year, filed a chargesheet in the case against eight accused persons but they failed to find evidence against Umar Farooq, Hasan Ansari and Arshad Khan who were granted bail by Additional Sessions Judge Hardeep Kaur of Patiala House Court on February 17.

Advocate Abu Bakr Sabbaq, counsel for the accused, had submitted that the chargesheet against his clients had not been filed within the stipulated period and probe against them was still pending even when the applicants were languishing in judicial custody since August 2024.

“They have been implicated in this false case and nothing incriminating has been recovered from their possession in front of independent public witnesses,” Mr. Sabbaq had said.

The police are expected to file the chargesheet within 90 days of arrest but this period can be extended by up to 90 more days in cases related to the UAPA.

“There is no embargo on the powers of the investigating agency to investigate the matter further, however, after the lapse of statutory time, the accused persons are entitled for statutory bail,” the court noted.