MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court (HC) on Monday directed that a medical certificate be issued to Muzammil Umar Kadri, a 74-year-old convict serving a life sentence in the 1993 Bombay blasts case, which claimed 257 lives and injured around 1,400, enabling him to seek private medical treatment.
The oral direction came in response to a petition filed by Kadri, citing his deteriorating health and the prison authorities’ refusal to issue the certificate despite repeated requests. Kadri is lodged at the Nashik Road Central Prison and has been in judicial custody for nearly 21 years.
According to the plea, filed through advocate Aisha Ansari, Kadri suffered a paralytic stroke on the right side of his body on March 28, 2022, and has since been unable to walk or stand without assistance. He is currently under treatment at Nashik Civil Hospital.
The petition stated that the prison authorities failed to respond to two letters sent by Kadri’s lawyer in January and February this year, requesting the medical certificate. The document is essential for applying for parole to seek private medical care.
Kadri, a convict under the now-defunct Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987 (TADA), was arrested on March 26, 1993. He was found guilty of assisting prime accused Tiger Memon in the landing of arms and RDX at Shekhadi coast in the Konkan region — explosives later used in the serial blasts. The Supreme Court upheld his conviction on May 30, 2007, after which he was sent to Nashik prison.
The 1993 Bombay blasts were a series of 12 coordinated bombings on March 12, orchestrated by Dawood Ibrahim’s D-Company, with key roles played by associates like Tiger Memon. Seen as retaliation for the post-Babri Masjid riots the blasts were one of India’s deadliest terrorist incidents.
Kadri’s petition emphasised his good conduct during incarceration, noting that he has been granted furlough seven times and parole eight times — and has always reported back on time. He argued that denial of the medical certificate violates his rights under the Prisons (Furlough and Parole) Rules, 1959, and the Constitution of India.
A division bench comprising Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Dr Neela Gokhale has scheduled the next hearing in the matter for April 23.
