1990 IAF officers killing case: Yasin Malik entitled to fair trial, observes SC

New Delhi, Nov 21 The Supreme Court observed on Thursday that Kashmiri separatist leader, Yasin Malik is entitled to a fair trial in the case involving the killing of IAF officers in Srinagar city in 1990 allegedly by him.

The apex court orally observed that even a terrorist like Ajmal Kasab was given a fair trial.

The observation was made by a bench of the apex court comprising Justice Abhay S. Oka and Justice Augustine George Masih while hearing an appeal filed by the CBI against an order for the physical production of Yasin Malik by the Jammu trial court.

Through the Solicitor General of India, Tushar Mehta, the CBI filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the trial court order saying that Malik could not be taken to Jammu because of security reasons in addition to the safety of the witnesses in the 1989 killing of four IAF officers.

The Solicitor General maintained that Malik was playing tricks by saying that he would appear in person to cross-examine witnesses without seeking the assistance of a lawyer. The Solicitor General displayed a picture of Malik on the dias with the founder of the terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Hafiz Mohammad Saeed in Pakistan.

“He is not an ordinary criminal. He is just not another terrorist. He travelled to Pakistan many times to meet Hafiz Saeed. The government cannot go by the book in this case. The witnesses need security. One witness was assassinated,” Tushar Mehta told the court.

Justice Abhay S. Oka said even Ajmal Kasab was given a fair trial. Justice Oka said the court must hear all accused in the case before passing an order.

The court asked the Government of India to explore the option of holding the trial in jail. Justice Oka said Malik could be allowed to appear in the Supreme Court through virtual mode.

The hearing was adjourned till next Thursday after the court allowed the CBI to amend its petition and implead all accused persons in this case as respondents.

In May 2022, the NIA court sentenced Malik to life imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to charges of waging war against the state, for conspiracy and terror funding. The NIA later appealed to the Delhi High Court seeking the death penalty for Malik in that case.

Yasin Malik is the main accused in the killing of four Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel in the Rawalpora locality of Srinagar on January 25, 1990.