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Engineer Rashid take oath as LS members
The National Investigation Agency on Monday had given its consent before a special court to allow Engineer Rashid to take the oath
Sheikh Abdul Rashid, popularly known as Engineer Rashid, on Friday took oath as the Parliament member of Baramulla Lok Sabha seat after Court granted him parole for two hours.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday had given its consent before a special court to allow Engineer Rashid to take the oath. The move was welcomed by leaders of various political parties in Jammu and Kashmir.
Engineer Rashid after taking oath in the office chambers of Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla had a detailed meeting with his family members who were allowed by the court to be present at the oath ceremony.
His family members, including his sons Abrar Rashid and Israr Rashid (both students) his daughter and wife, had a detailed interaction with the MP before he was taken to Tihar jail again.
Awami-e-Ittihad Party (AIP) spokesman Firdous Ahmad Baba said, “As per court orders, Engineer Rashid was brought into Parliament building around 11.30 am. The family members three children and wife also attended the oath ceremony. Engineer Rashid was taken back to Tihar around 1.30 pm. We strictly followed the court orders.”
Baba said now they will apply for regular bail for the MP. “For us it was a big day,” he added. The Patiala House court in Delhi had passed an order on Tuesday allowing him to take oath as MP.
NIA had set certain conditions on Rashid — who has been lodged in Tihar jail since August 2019 under stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or UAPA — like not speaking to the media, people familiar with the matter said. On Friday, the Baramulla MP didn’t speak to press or leaders of his party, which he had established eight years ago.
Rashid, won the recently concluded general elections from Baramulla in J&K as an Independent candidate defeating former chief minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah by 2,04,142 votes, has been arrested for his alleged involvement in a 2017 J&K terror funding case. He had moved the court seeking interim bail, or custody parole in the alternative, to take oath and perform his parliamentary functions.
