Abu Salem Will Flee If Granted Parole: Maharashtra Govt Tells HC
The government said that at most, Salem can be granted two days' emergency parole. The bench said it would hear the plea on January 28.
Published : January 20, 2026 at 3:25 PM IST
|Updated : January 20, 2026 at 5:12 PM IST
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government informed the Bombay High Court (HC) on Tuesday that international gangster Abu Salem can only be granted two days conditional parole with police escort, to complete the funeral rites following the death of his brother.
Salem had filed a petition in the HC seeking 14 days parole. The Maharashtra government strongly opposed this application, which was heard on Tuesday, before a bench comprising of Justices Ajay Gadkari and Shyam Chandak.
"Given his past record, keeping Abu Salem out of jail for an extended period of time is inappropriate", the Central Bureau of Investigation requested the Bombay High Court to listen to their arguments before releasing him on parole. In light of this, the HC rescheduled the hearing on Abu Salem's case for January 28, 2026.
The government told the court, Salem is an international criminal who had fled the country immediately after the Mumbai serial bomb blasts in 1993. After 12 years of hard work, the investigative agencies could bring him back with the help of an extradition treaty. "Therefore, he cannot be kept out of jail for very long", the government stated.
Consequently, the bench granted him only two days of conditional parole to visit his family to offer condolences. The prison authorities requested the HC to ask Salem to bear the expenses of the police officers who will escort him.
Salem has been imprisoned since November 2005. His stepbrother, Abu Hakim Ansari, died on November 15, 2025. Abu Salem requested a 14-day emergency parole from the prison authorities in order to attend his brother's burial. However, the prison administration turned against his request. Salem then challenged the decision in an appeal submitted to the High Court by his lawyer, Farhana Shah.
He is accused of major crimes like extortion, murder, and conspiracy to commit murder in addition to terrorism. Salem was found guilty in the 1993 serial bomb blasts case and given a life sentence by the court. In November 2005, after an extradition treaty was signed with the Portugal government, Salem was brought back to India, where he is presently serving his sentence at Taloja jail in Navi Mumbai. This treaty prohibits the Indian government from giving him a sentence of more than 25 years in prison.
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