Baramulla MP Engineer Rashid (file photo)

Delhi High Court On Monday, interim bail was granted till June 2 to Baramulla MP Sheikh Abdul Rashid alias Engineer Rashid, who is in jail in a terror funding case following the demise of his father.A bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Madhu Jain said that during the interim bail period, Rashid will always be accompanied by at least two police officers in plain clothes, who will accompany him from the beginning of the journey from Tihar Jail till his return from Srinagar.The bench ordered that he would be allowed to visit the cemetery or any other place of worship, but would not be allowed to go anywhere else from his residence in Srinagar and Langate.Rashid had sought interim bail on the grounds that his father, who was undergoing treatment at AIIMS, died on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday.Rashid’s lawyer Vikayat Oberoi said interim bail was needed to enable burial, traditional rites and many other ceremonies.“Accordingly, on account of the demise of the appellant’s father, the appellant is granted interim bail till June 2, 2026,” the court ordered.“Immediately, on the expiry of the bail period, the appellant shall surrender before the concerned Jail Superintendent and be brought back to Tihar Jail, Delhi,” it said.The court further ordered that any meeting between Rashid and persons other than his family members would take place only in the presence of police officers and he could use only one mobile number, which would be given to the investigating officer and would be kept “ON” at all times.It also directed Rashid not to contact any witnesses or their family members or indulge in any criminal or illegal activity or leave the country without its prior permission.On April 28, the court granted him interim bail for a week so that he could meet his ailing father in Srinagar. This period was extended till May 10 after Rashid’s father was shifted to AIIMS here for treatment.Rashid is facing trial in the terror funding case. He is accused of funding separatists and terrorist groups in Jammu and Kashmir. He has been lodged in Delhi’s Tihar Jail since 2019 after he was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the 2017 case.After they were named in the chargesheet in October 2019, a special NIA court framed charges against Rashid and others in March 2022 under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 121 (waging war against the government), and 124A (sedition) of the Indian Penal Code and relevant provisions of the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.