A Delhi court on Thursday handed over Jagtar Singh Hawara [Images], prime accused in the assassination of former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh [Images], to the Chandigarh police, 18 months after he made a daring escape from the high security Burail jail where he was lodged.

Allowing a petition for his transit remand filed by the Chandigarh police, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Madhu Jain directed that Hawara be produced before the court conducting trial in the assassination and the jail break case on Friday.

Hawara, an accused in the May 22 twin cinema blasts in the capital, was being interrogated by the Delhi police for the last one month after his arrest along with two others on June 8 from a north-west Delhi area.

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The court also directed the Chandigarh police to produce the accused before the Delhi court on July 11 and also as and when required for trial in the cinema blast case.

The magistrate kept pending the petition filed by the Punjab police seeking his custody in connection with two bomb blasts in Ropar and Kharar.

Hawara's counsel M S Bhutalia opposed the Chandigarh police plea for transit remand asking them to first produce a production warrant from the Chandigarh court to secure the custody of the accused.

Rejecting the argument, the court said since Hawara was a proclaimed offender, no such warrant was required.

Meanwhile, the court extended the judicial custody of cinema hall blast case co-accused Jaspal Singh and Vikas Sehgal till July 21.