A special court for National Investigation Agency (NIA) cases cannot cancel bail granted to a person, accused of attempting to establish Islamic rule in India through unlawful means, just because he was subsequently suspected to be a Sri Lankan national, the Madras High Court has held.
A Division Bench of Justices S.S. Sundar and Sunder Mohan allowed an appeal and set aside a bail cancellation order passed by the special court which had observed that Section 43D(7) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) of 1967 does not permit grant of bail to a foreigner.
However, the Bench pointed out that Section 43D(7) states that no bail should be granted to a person accused of an offence punishable under UAPA if he was not an Indian citizen and had entered the country unauthorisedly or illegally except in exceptional circumstances and for reasons to be recorded in writing.
