The Bombay High Court on Friday rejected the application of Abdul Ghani Turk, who is on death row in the 1993 serial blasts case, for release on parole for a day to attend his daughter's wedding scheduled for June 4. A vacation Bench of Justices R.Y. Ganoo and N.M. Jamdar rejected the application on the ground that his appeal was pending in the Supreme Court. The court had asked the police to file a verification report. Opposing the plea, the police said Dongri in south Mumbai, the venue of the wedding, was a crowded area. Therefore, allowing Turk to attend the wedding entailed a risk. They pointed out that Turk's appeal, along with those of the co-accused, was pending in the Supreme Court.
This is Turk's second application for parole: his lawyer told The Hindu that in 2009, he was given relief to perform the last rites of his mother.
Turk was sentenced to death in 2006 by a designated Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act court for the blast in Century Bazar in 1993. The blasts killed 257 people.
