When the special CBI court delivered the quantum of punishment in the second and the final trial of the 1993 serial Mumbai bomb blasts, one was reminded of the famous legal proverb – ‘Justice must not only be done but, must be seen to be done’.

On Thursday, when the special CBI judge announced the quantum of punishment for all the five accused in the 1993 serial bomb blast case – justice had been done. However, a closer look at the quantum and it was clear that – justice had not been seen to be done.

Taher Merchant (55) and Feroz Khan (47) were sentenced to death for having conspired to cause the RDX blasts that killed 257 and injured 713. However, Abu Salem (48) was sentenced to life imprisonment for the same offence. It was clear that Salem escaped the noose, thanks to the assurance given by the Indian government to the Supreme Court of Portugal.

Salem had absconded from the country after the bomb blasts and was working with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim. Salem specialised in extorting money from Bollywood. According to underworld sources, Salem had a knack for issuing threats over the phone. His voice reportedly sent shivers down the spine of Bollywood celebrities.

Salem was finally apprehended by the Interpol in Lisbon, Portugal in September 2002. The Indian government immediately moved the Portugal courts seeking Salem’s extradition to India. After an intense legal battle fought over two years, a Portugal court finally cleared Salem’s extradition to India with a few conditions. The main condition was that Salem would not be sentenced to death (Portugal had banned the death penalty way back in 1867). The other being that Salem will not be sentenced to more than 25 years in jail.

The Indian government signed a solemn assurance accepting the conditions and Salem was finally extradited to India in November 2005. Immediately after arriving in India, Salem was arrested for his involvement in the Mumbai serial blasts and subsequently in other offences registered against him.

After a trial of over 12 years, the special court delivered its verdict convicting Salem and sentencing him to life imprisonment. Immediately after the verdict, Salem’s lawyers were quick to point out that life imprisonment to Salem violated the solemn assurance given by the Indian government to Portugal. They made it clear that they will soon file an appeal in the Supreme Court (Under the provisions of the TADA Act, the special TADA court’s verdict can be directly challenged or appealed against in the Supreme Court).

Meanwhile, the special court in its judgment made it clear that the verdict was within the provisions of the Indian laws and the extradition deal with Portugal. The court observed that the powers of the court to award life imprisonment “have not been taken away” by the Solemn Sovereign Assurance given to the Portugal court by the Indian government.

The court in its detailed order also mentioned that when the Solemn Assurance was perused it was observed that the Indian government was well aware that it would not be in a position to give Solemn Sovereign Assurance that no court in India shall award punishment of life imprisonment to Salem.

The court in its judgement also pointed out that the solemn assurance was given after considering the relevant sections of the Extradition Act, which bars death sentence to an accused who has been extradited from a country which does not permit it.

Though Salem has been found guilty of offences punishable with death, he could not be sent to the gallows because the provisions of Extradition Act did not permit it.

The court also pointed out that the solemn assurance has specific reference to the provisions of Article 72(1) of the Constitution of India clearly stating that the President has the power to reduce or remit sentence of any person convicted of any offence. The court further observed that this power cannot be questioned in any court of law and is beyond judicial review and that the President is vested with the powers to ensure full compliance of the Solemn Assurance.

The court clarified that the Supreme Court of Portugal looked at the Solemn Assurance as exercise of powers by the Indian government and not in context with regards to the powers of any Indian court to sentence a convicted person.

From this judgement, it is quite clear that Salem’s case will now surely move to the Supreme Court and may even land up at the doors of the President of India.

However, it is very clear that Salem has managed to escape the gallows for an offence which clearly attracted the death penalty. And it is purely because he was extradited from Portugal which has abolished the death penalty. So, one thing becomes clear now that Salem’s detention and arrest in Lisbon, Portugal in 2002 may not have just been a coincidence.

It now remains to be seen if the Supreme Court or the President of India commutes his life imprisonment term to 25 years or less. If that happens, then, the 48-year-old Salem, who has already been in jail for 12 years, will have to serve just another 13 years or less and will be out of jail a free man before he is 61.