Court issues notice to CBI director over Salem's extradition

A Delhi Court issued notice to the CBI director seeking his response as to why underworld don Abu Salem was extradited instead of being deported here from Portugal in 2005 to face trial in criminal cases including the 1992 Mumbai blasts case. "Issue notice to the CBI Director for August 5 for apprising the court about extradition of Abu Salem," Additional Session Judge Ravinder Kaur said on Saturday. The order came after Additional Solicitor General Vikas Singh submitted that "actually it was a case of deportation as the accused was caught in Portugal for using forged travel documents." The ASG, who on behalf of Delhi Police had sought dropping of MCOCA charges against Salem, had responded to a court query as to why the Centre instead of deportation went for his extradition, putting restrictions on the number of cases on which he could be tried and the quantum of sentence. The extradition of the don was conditional and came with restrictions on the number of cases on which he could be tried and the quantum of sentence. These limitations would not have been there in case of deportation. The NDA government had given an executive assurance that after Salem's extradition he would not be tried for offences which may invite imprisonment exceeding 25 years. Salem is facing MCOCA charges in connection with an extortion call made to city-based businessman Ashok Gupta in 2002, demanding Rs five crore as protection money. He was extradited from Portugal in 2005 in three cases of CBI probing the Mumbai blasts, passport cases of Lucknow and Hyderabad, three extortion cases and a conspiracy to murder case in Delhi and Pradip Jain and Ajit Dewani murder cases in Mumbai. Meanwhile, the court also issued a production warrant against gangster Salem for 6th August and asked the authorities of Arthur Road jail, where he is lodged in connection with various cases including the Mumbai serial blasts case, to ensure his presence on that day. Earlier, the don was not produced in Delhi by Mumbai police which had cited a notification of Maharashtra government claiming strong possibility of attack on Salem's life by members of other global terrorist groups. The warrant was issued after Additional Solicitor General Vikas Singh informed the court that the notification, putting restrictions on Salem's movement out of Maharashtra, has been revoked.

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