The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a petition filed by gangster Abu Salem seeking premature release from prison in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts case, NDTV reported.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta directed him to move the Bombay High Court for relief, India Today reported.
It further refused Salem’s request for urgent directions, saying that his conviction under the now-repealed Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act and criminal record did not justify special consideration.
In September 2017, a special court under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act in Mumbai sentenced Salem to life imprisonment for his role in the blasts that killed more than 250 persons.
He was extradited from Portugal in November 2005.
Salem had filed a petition claiming the benefit of three years and 16 days of remission earned for good conduct toward the computation of his 25-year jail sentence, after completion of which he would be eligible for premature release, Live Law reported.
Remission is the reduction of the duration of a prison sentence without changing its nature, allowing for earlier release.
The gangster also cited the decision by the Supreme Court in July 2022, which relied on the extradition treaty between India and Portugal. The terms of this treaty had held that Salem would have to be released on completion of 25 years in jail.
However, the Maharashtra government has maintained that Salem had not completed 25 years.
At an earlier hearing, the Supreme Court had asked Salem to produce rules in Maharashtra under which remission could be granted to someone convicted under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act.
On Monday, the counsel for Salem submitted Rule 4 of the 1962 Maharashtra Prisons Remission System Rules, which outlines the types of remission, Live Law reported.
His counsel said that he had sought ordinary and annual good conduct remission.
During the hearing, the bench asked against which order the gangster had come before it. In response, his counsel said that Salem had moved the High Court with a petition for premature release, according to the legal news outlet.
In the High Court, Salem had sought a direction for the authorities to specify a release date after completing 25 years, saying that his right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution was being breached as he was being kept in prison beyond the 25-year jail term as agreed by the Indian authorities while signing the treaty with Portugal.
However, the High Court in July 2025 prima facie observed that Salem had not completed 25 years, Live Law reported.
It referred to the Supreme Court’s order, which took the date of Salem’s arrest as October 12, 2005, to provide for the premature release.
In the Supreme Court on Monday, Salem’s counsel said that the gangster had surpassed 10 months of his jail term.
“It is the case of habeas corpus, illegal custody,” Live Law quoted his counsel as adding.
The bench asked him to file an application in the High Court.
During the hearing, Salem’s counsel claimed that the gangster had been in illegal custody for more than 10 months.
“You have stayed for 25 years for not doing something good to the society,” Live Law quoted Nath as having said verbally. “You have [been] convicted under TADA.”
The case
In June 2017, the special Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act court had found Salem and five others guilty of conspiring and carrying out a series of bomb blasts across Mumbai in 1993, which ended up killing over 250 persons, Live Law reported.
Salem was convicted for offences punishable under sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act, the Arms Act, the Explosive Substances Act and the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.
According to the prosecution, Salem had transported and distributed arms and ammunition used in the blast.
In September 2017, the special court had sentenced Salem to life imprisonment.
This came after he was extradited from Portugal.
In December 2002, the Union government issued a gazette notification under the 1962 Extradition Act, directing that its provisions would apply to the Portuguese government, Live Law reported.
At the time, former Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani assured Portugal that it would exercise its powers conferred by Indian laws to ensure that if extradited for trial in India, Salem would not be given a death penalty or imprisonment for a term beyond 25 years.
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