India, June 18 -- The West Bengal government on Thursday moved the Supreme Court against the Delhi high court's order directing the release of Rashid Khan, a life convict in the 1993 Bowbazar blast case that claimed 69 lives in Kolkata, urging urgent intervention to prevent his release.

Mentioning the matter before Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, counsel for the state sought expedited listing of its challenge to the June 5 judgment of the Delhi high court, contending that the case involved a grave terror offence and that the high court had erred in directing Khan's premature release despite repeated rejection of his remission plea by the State Sentence Review Board (SSRB).

"The offence is very serious," said the state's counsel, pres...