The CBI has asked the state government to hold trial of jailed gangster Abu Salem in Lucknow through video conferencing, citing security threats and extensive arrangements which have to be made every time he is brought from Mumbai to Lucknow for court hearings.

On August 5, CBI director Ashwini Kumar wrote to the UP Chief Secretary for expediting arrangements for video-conferencing at the court.

UP Home Secretary Mahesh Gupta said, “The CBI has sent letters regarding video-conferencing arrangements in the past too, and the Prison Department has been asked to install equipment for video-conferencing. The necessary orders have already been issued.”

IG (prisons) Sulkhan Singh said, "We had sent a proposal to the government about a month ago after conceptualising the project with the help of the National Informatics Centre, which is the agency to install the equipment. The project has been made for eight jails in UP where video-conferencing facility would be made available. The project cost is estimated to be about Rs 2 crore. But the funds are yet to be released from the government."

The Special Task Force cell of the Delhi CBI had lodged an FIR in 1997 against Abu Salem, his wife Samira Jumani and broker Pervez Alam for forging documents and procuring passports under fake names from the Lucknow regional passport office on July 6, 1993.

A case is pending against Salem in Delhi too. Arvind Kumar Shukla, Salem’s counsel in Delhi, opposed the move, arguing that it was against terms and conditions of the don’s extradition in 2005, which said Salem would be tried in person.