New Delhi [India], August 2 (ANI): The Patiala House court on Friday declined police custody of jailed gangsters Hashim Baba and Anwar Khan in a registered MCOCA case. The Delhi police had sought 7 days further custody of Hashim Baba and Anwar Khan for their confrontation in view of the statement which was recorded under MCOCA.

Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Chander Jit Singh rejected the application seeking further custody of Hashim and Anwar. While rejecting the Delhi police's application, the court stated that no new accused have been arrested who need to be confronted with the accused persons. No new facts have surfaced in the statement, which the investigation agency is not aware of.

The court remanded them to judicial custody alongwith two other accused, Zoya and Sameer Baba. All accused were produced from Judicial custody.

Special public prosecutor (SPP) Akhand Pratap Singh, alongwith Samridhi Dobhal, appeared for the Delhi police. It was submitted that on July 2, the eight accused, Zoya Khan and Sameer alias Baba, gave their concessional statement. Accused persons, Hasim and Anwar Khan, are not cooperating. Their custodial interrogation is required to extract the truthful information.

The application was opposed by the advocates Anurag Jain, Suleman Mohd. Khan, Tarun Rana and M M Khan.

Earlier on July 21, the court granted 8 days' custody of Hashim Baba, Sameer Baba, Zoya Khan and Anwar Khan alias Chacha in an MCOCA case. On July 18, the Patiala House court had reserved an order on the police custody of Anwar Khan alias Chacha, Hasim Baba alias Asim, Sameer alias Baba, and Zoya Khan in an MCOCA case.

Special public prosecutor (SPP) Akhand Pratap Singh for the special cell had submitted that these accused have been arrested in an MCOCA case linked with the murder of a businessman, Sunil Jain, in the Farsh Bazar area.

The murder is the outcome of the organised crime syndicate. During the investigation, the names of these four accused surfaced, SPP submitted.

It was also submitted that the Remand was required to unearth the modus operandi of the syndicate. Some of the members of the syndicate have already fled the country. On July 16, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the petition of the accused persons challenging their re-arrest in the present case.

The High Court had ruled that a person cannot claim immunity from re-arrest merely because their initial arrest was vitiated on procedural grounds.

'The re-arrest, if carried out after curing such defects and in accordance with law, is not impermissible,' Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said.

'In criminal law, procedural safeguards are essential to protect liberty, but they cannot be turned into a shield to defeat lawful investigation into heinous crimes,' the Court held, underlining that 'a lapse by the police in the first arrest does not create a bar against subsequent arrest once the legal requirements are fulfilled.'

The petition was filed by Anwar Khan alias Chacha, Hasim Baba alias Asim, Sameer alias Baba, and Zoya Khan through a team of advocates including Anurag Jain, MM Khan, Amit Chadha, Atin Chadha, Munisha Chadha, and Sulaiman Mohd. Khan, and others.

They sought a declaration that their re-arrest on June 10, 2025, in FIR of 2024 related to the murder of one Sunil Jain was unlawful and unconstitutional. (ANI)