The Maharashtra government on Tuesday strongly opposed gangster Abu Salem’s plea seeking 14 days of parole, warning the Bombay High Court that he could flee if released for an extended period. The government told the court that Salem, given his international criminal background, should be granted only two days of emergency parole under strict police escort to attend his brother’s funeral rites.
The matter was heard by a division bench comprising Justices Ajay Gadkari and Shyam Chandak. While Salem sought a longer parole period, the state government maintained that any extended release would be unsafe. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) also urged the court to consider Salem’s history before granting parole, prompting the bench to reschedule the detailed hearing for January 28, 2026.
The government highlighted that Salem had fled India after the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts and remained absconding for over a decade. It stressed that investigative agencies had to make sustained efforts over 12 years to bring him back to India through an extradition treaty with Portugal. Allowing him to remain outside prison for long, the government argued, would undermine security concerns.
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Taking note of these submissions, the court allowed Salem only two days of conditional parole, strictly for offering condolences to his family. The parole will be granted under police escort, and prison authorities requested that Salem bear the expenses of the officers assigned to accompany him during this period.
Abu Salem has been lodged in prison since November 2005 and is currently serving his sentence at Taloja jail in Navi Mumbai. Convicted in the 1993 serial bomb blasts case, he is also accused in multiple cases involving murder, extortion and criminal conspiracy. His extradition treaty with Portugal limits his maximum imprisonment to 25 years, under which he continues to remain in judicial custody.
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