08-05-2025
Salem's plea for premature release under consideration: Maha govt tells HC
A DECISION on the premature release of gangster Abu Salem, currently serving prison term for the 1993 Bombay bomb blasts, is under consideration before the state government and will be decided shortly, the Bombay High Court was informed on Wednesday.
Salem was extradited from Portugal in 2005 and an assurance was given to the Portugal authorities that he will not be given the death sentence or a prison term beyond 25 years. Salem has filed a petition before the high court seeking clarity on his release date, stating that he is entitled to benefits like remission meant for early release for prisoners. The state Home department and the Maharashtra prison department on Wednesday submitted affidavits to the court in response to Salem's plea. Both the affidavits state that Salem has completed over 19 years in jail, counting his arrest from the time of his extradition to India in November 2005.
'The period of 25 years of the imprisonment of the prisoner is not completed till date. Hence, the final date of completion of 25 years of petitioner/prisoner will be decided after the reception of the decision on the premature release of the petitioner by the Home Department, state of Maharashtra,' the affidavit filed by Suhas Warke, Additional Director General of Police and Inspector General of Prisons and Correctional Services, said. The affidavit adds that Salem's history is not a 'palatable one', and that he has committed many offences in India.
The affidavit filed by Sugriv Dhapate, joint secretary of the Home department, also said that Salem's actual imprisonment is over 19 years. 'It is further submitted that the proposal of premature release of the petitioner is under consideration of the government and will be decided shortly,' the affidavit states. The proposal for Salem's premature release is under consideration under Rule 25 (iii) of the Maharashtra Prison Manual. The proposal includes the opinion of the advisory board, the concerned court which had convicted Salem, a report from the police, district magistrate, along with a recommendation from the prison department. The affidavit states that Salem is recommended to be in the category of 50 years imprisonment, and if his remission is calculated in the category, his release date would be in 2046, which is beyond the 25 years' assurance.
Both the affidavits have also referred to a previous Supreme Court order on an appeal filed by Salem. The Supreme Court in 2022 said that honouring the period of 25 years as assured, will arise only when the 25 years' term is completed, mentioning November 10, 2030, as the date of completion. The court had then said that such a plea on his release cannot be raised before the period lapses.
Salem was sentenced to life imprisonment in two cases-in 2015 for the murder of Pradeep Jain, a builder in Mumbai, and in 2017 for the 1993 Bombay blasts case. Salem had filed a similar plea in the special court in Mumbai, seeking clarity on his release date, which the CBI had said was premature, since he is yet to complete 25 years in jail.
