NEW DELHI: The US authorities, while responding to a legal assistance request submitted by J&K police through the ministry of external affairs, seeking access to two alleged Gmail accounts of PDP MLA and terror accused Waheed-ur-Rehman Para, have posed a set of counter-queries and clarifications.
Sources said the US department of justice, responding to India’s request conveyed under the mutual legal assistance treaty (MLAT), said it would need to establish that Para’s “described conduct” would also be punishable in US, to seek content records from Google. Also, it asked if there was any specific basis to believe that Para’s accounts would contain materials relevant to suspects’ efforts to funnel money to banned outfit Lashker-e-Taiba. Thirdly, DoJ sought to know how the email IDs were obtained by the Indian authorities. The counter-queries are viewed by some observers as a possible delaying tactic. In April 2023, Para was awarded a three-month fellowship by US-based Yale University. However, courts here did not permit him to travel to the US.
As per the investigation, Para was found to be using two accounts – parawaheed01@gmail.com and waheedparra@gmail.com – in addition to the sole email account – parawahid@gmail.com – declared by him. Content retrieved from the declared gmail account showed exchanges between Tehreek-e-Hurriyat convener in Pakistan G M Safi and Altaf Ahmad Shah ‘Funtoosh’, son in law of hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani, in Dec 2013. Para sought to dismiss the cases against him as fabricated, guided by political reasons and meant “to muzzle my voice and rights”. “I am a law-abiding citizen who has worked for the cause of democracy and peace and will continue to work in the same direction. Let them have a response from US govt or Google…I don’t have any objection.” He was arrested in November 2020 and granted bail by HC in May 2022.
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