Gangster Abu Salem, convicted in the 1993 Bombay blasts case, has approached the Bombay High Court seeking remission of his sentence and premature release from prison..According to Salem's plea, he has completed 25 years in prison as per the terms of an extradition treaty between India and Portugal and should hence, be released from prison. His petition follows a previous rejection of his release request by a special Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (TADA) court in Mumbai on December 10, 2024.A bench of Justice Sarang Kotwal and Justice SM Modak agreed to hear the matter on March 10, after Salem’s counsel, Advocate Farhana Shah, mentioned the case before them on Monday. .In his petition, Salem has claimed that his total sentence, including the periods he spent as an undertrial and the remissions he has earned, already exceeds 25 years. As on December 24, 2024, he claims that he has served a total of over 25 years in prison by adding up his sentences in two cases. First, he counts the 11 years, 9 months and 26 days he spent as an under trial from November 2005 to September 2017. Second, he includes 9 Years, 10 months and 4 days between February, 2015 to December 2024 spent as a convict in the 2006 TADA case. Finally, he says he has earned 3 years and 16 days jail remission for good behavior in the 2006 case and another 1 month relaxation given by the apex court for the time he spent as an under trial in Portugal. When these periods are added together, he argues that by the end of 2024, he has already served over 24 years and 9 months in total, it was been claimed..In addition, Salem's petition has also raised concerns about the breach of assurances made during his extradition from Portugal. Salem was brought to India in 2005 after a long-drawn extradition battle with Portugal. According to these assurances, Salem's detention should not exceed 25 years, in line with the "principle of specialty."As per the petition, continuing his detention beyond this period would violate the terms agreed upon during his extradition. The petition has also highlighted Salem’s good conduct in prison, with no complaints recorded against him, as confirmed by the jail authorities.It has also referenced the Supreme Court's decision in 2022 that fixed his total sentence to term of 25 years based on the same treaty..The authorities are delaying his release by employing "dilatory tactics", he has alleged.Keeping him in prison past the point of serving his term violates his right to life and personal liberty, guaranteed by Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, the plea claims. .Accordingly, he has sought the Court's intervention to direct the authorities to grant him remission and provide a final release date.
