Convict Habib Ahmed Khan, Serving Life Sentence for 1993 Train Blasts, Released Despite Supreme Court’s Capital Punishment-like Disapproval

Habib Ahmed Khan recently appealed to the top court for permanent parole due to his declining health and old age. His counsel explained that he has spent over 27 years in jail and has been granted parole three times.

The bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan reviewed Mr Khan’s medical reports and questioned the purpose of his continued incarceration, stating that his situation is akin to capital punishment. The Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Vikramjeet Banerjee, representing the Rajasthan government, stated that due to Mr Khan’s conviction for a terror offence, he would face hindrances in applying for remission.

However, the bench urged Banerjee to consider the case from a human rights perspective. Justice Oka emphasized that Mr Khan’s deteriorating health and age should be taken into account, while Justice Bhuyan highlighted the insensitivity of the law given Mr Khan’s advanced age.

The bench instructed Mr Banerjee to seek instruction on whether Habib Ahmed Khan could be granted remission or permanent parole and scheduled a hearing for two weeks later. Habib Ahmed Khan was arrested in 1994 and convicted in 2004 under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) for his involvement in a series of train blasts in 1993.

In 2021, he was granted parole by the top court, and his third parole, initially for three weeks, has been extended due to his deteriorating health. The Rajasthan High Court had previously granted Mr Khan parole twice, once in August 2018 for 20 days and again in 2020 for the same duration due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

The matter is currently under consideration, with the court seeking to balance the legal framework and Mr Khan’s human rights.