Lok Sabha MP Engineer Rashid walks out of Tihar jail on interim bail

New Delhi: Baramulla MP Engineer Rashid walked out of Tihar Jail on Wednesday, a day after a court here granted him interim bail till October 2 in a terror funding case so that he can campaign in the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls.

Rashid has been in jail since 2019 following his arrest by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in the 2017 terror funding case.

“Rashid was released from the jail at 4.15 pm,” said a senior prison official.

Sheikh Abdul Rashid, popularly known as Engineer Rashid, defeated former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in Baramulla.

Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Elections are scheduled to be held in three phases — September 18, September 25 and October 1. The results will be declared on October 8.

Rashid’s outfit Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) is contesting the assembly elections.

Earlier in the day, Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh ordered Rashid’s release on interim bail on a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and one surety of the like amount. He also imposed certain conditions on him, including that he would not speak to the media about the case.