Jammu Kashmir Polls: Rashid Engineer Granted Interim Bail

Lok Sabha member Engineer Rashid has been granted interim bail by the Delhi High Court. Rashid Engineer was jailed in connection with a terror funding case. He has been granted interim bail till October 2, 2024 by the court and was asked to surrender on October 3.

Rashid has plead for bail to allow him to campaign for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections. His brother Khurshid Ahmad is contesting in the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls from Langate constituency on North Kashmir as a candidate from Awami Ittihad Party (AIP).

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Sheikh Abdul Rashid, popularly known as Engineer Rashid, is an independent member of Lok Sabha representing Baramulla constituency. In the Lok Sabha polls, Rashid secured the Baramulla seat by defeating  former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah by over two lakh votes.

Earlier Rashid was a member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, representing Langate constituency in Handwara, and he is also the founder of the AIP.

In 2019 Rashid has been arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act  in connection with the 2017 terror funding activities. He is currently lodged in Delhi’s Tihar jail.

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Prior to this, the Court had granted him interim bail to take oath as Lok Sabha MP.

Since Rashid is in jail, Rashid’s son Abrar Rashid is currently leading the party’s campaign. The AIP aims to contest candidates to 40-42 seats in the Kashmir region and 5-6 seats in the Jammu region.