Court seeks CBI, jail authorities response to Abu Salem’s plea for release date

A special court in Mumbai has directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and prison authorities to respond to a plea filed by gangster Abu Salem, seeking information about his release date. Salem, currently serving a life sentence, has asked for clarity on the total time he has left in prison.
Salem’s plea, submitted through advocate Farhana Shah, stated that he wrote to the superintendent of Nashik Central Prison on July 20, requesting details about his remaining sentence. “I have completed over 23 years and seven months in prison,” Salem said, adding that he had not received a response from the authorities.
The plea seeks a directive for prison officials to inform Salem of the exact date of his release, accounting for his time as an undertrial, his conviction period, and any remission he may be entitled to.
Salem was extradited to India in 2005 from Portugal for his involvement in the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts and the 1995 murder of builder Pradeep Jain.
He is currently serving life sentences in both cases. As part of his extradition, Indian authorities had assured Portugal that Salem would not face the death penalty and his total sentence would not exceed 25 years.
In July 2022, the Supreme Court of India ruled that Salem must be released after completing 25 years in jail, as agreed during his extradition.
The CBI and prison authorities have been asked to respond to Salem’s plea by October 17.