'Fair trial is crucial': SC suggests court in jail for Yasin Malik's trial

Underlining the fundamental right to a fair trial, the Supreme Court on Thursday proposed setting up a makeshift courtroom within Delhi's Tihar Jail to facilitate the physical cross-examination of terror convict Yasin Malik in two high-profile cases of kidnapping and murder.

- Utkarsh Anand

A bench of justices Abhay S Oka and AG Masih emphasised its duty to ensure that justice is not only done but also seen to be done, even in cases involving grave allegations.

"In our country, a fair trial was given even to Ajmal Kasab," observed the bench as it heard an appeal filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against a Jammu court order mandating Malik's physical presence for trial proceedings.

Malik, the Jammu court ruled, needed to be present in person for the cross-examination of witnesses in two cases—the 1989 kidnapping of Rubaiya Sayeed, daughter of then Union minister and later Jammu & Kashmir chief minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed; and the killing of four Indian Air Force personnel.