Terror funding case: Delhi HC denies bail to NSCN-IM leader Alemla Jamir

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has refused to grant bail to Alemla Jamir, a self-styled “cabinet minister” of the Naga insurgent outfit NSCN-IM, in an alleged case of terror funding.

A bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Shalinder Kaur on January 13 said going by the allegations against Jamir, the evidence and the fact that her husband was absconding, her appeal against an order dismissing her bail plea for the second time had no merit.

The accused said she was aged about 51 and had spent about 4.5 years in jail with the prosecution being uncertain about the conclusion of her case's trial.

The bench observed the trial judge was trying to speed up the trial and the prosecution was also attempting to conclude the trial as soon as possible.

"Justice hurried is justice buried. We also cannot lose sight of the element that quality of evidence that is to be adduced before the trial cannot be compromised," the bench said.

Observing Jamir was a flight risk, the court said she allegedly held a high position in the NSCN(IM) and was also in a position to influence the witnesses and tamper with the evidence.

"Accordingly, the present appeal is dismissed," the order held.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) lodged a case against Jamir after she was intercepted at the Delhi airport on December 17, 2019, before she could fly to Dimapur with about Rs 72 in cash.

The agency said she was unable to explain the source of the recovered cash and an intimation was sent to income tax department prompting an investigation.

While opposing the bail plea, the prosecution alleged Jamir and other accused connived and established a "sophisticated network" through the armed cadets of the "Naga Army" to extort money for terror funding.

Jamir said sufficient evidence was not on record to support the alleged serious accusations against her.

In the judgement, the court said NIA's investigation revealed NSCN(IM) was a terrorist outfit with sophisticated weaponry and ran a parallel government.

"Allegations against the appellant are specific of her being involved in a criminal conspiracy..for raising and collecting lots of funds from businessmen in Dimapur," the order said, "by creating a systematic mechanism for collecting extortion money for the NSCN(IM), for which she had opened, as many as 20 bank accounts, some in fictitious names also." Jamir and other accused persons were acting in a surreptitious manner trying to leave behind no trail of evidence over the extortion of money for carrying out NSCN(IM)'s terror operations, it added.