New Delhi:
Dr Khalil Chishty, a Pakistani scientist who has spent many years at a prison in Ajmer has been granted bail by the Supreme Court. Human rights activists have been pleading for assistance for him for years. The Supreme Court has also agreed to hear his plea to return to Karachi and has asked his lawyers to file a separate petition for this.
Dr Chishty is 80 now, and is unable to walk unaided. He has to be carried to and from jail by two people.
He is accused of killing a man during a brawl in Ajmer in April 1992. He was visiting the Rajasthan city then to offer prayers at the famous shrine of Sufi saint Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti. Since then, he has not been allowed to travel back to Pakistan.
In January last year, the Karachi virologist was awarded life imprisonment after an 18-year-long trial. Till then, he had remained largely under house arrest in Rajasthan, his lawyers say. After he was given the life sentence, he was placed in the Ajmer Jail. Some others convicted in the same case had been granted bail. Dr Chishty's Pakistani citizenship meant he was not allowed to leave prison.
Sources said Dr Chishty's case was discussed at yesterday's lunch meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari during the latter's one-day India visit. Pakistani officials have urged India to set Dr Chishty free, the sources said.
In June last year, Supreme Court Justice Markandeya Katju had requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to release Dr Chishty on humanitarian grounds. Acting on Justice Katju's appeal, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot approved his mercy plea and sent it to Governor Shivraj Patil for final clearance. After that, Mr Patil sent a questionnaire to the law department on various issues related to the case.