The Supreme Court on January 5 refused to grant bail to activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the alleged larger conspiracy case linked to the February 2020 Delhi riots, holding that a prima facie case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) is made out against them.
A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria, however, granted bail to five other accused — Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad — in the same case.
While denying relief to Khalid and Imam, the court said the prosecution material disclosed prima facie allegations sufficient to attract the statutory bar under the UAPA. “At this stage of the proceedings, their release on bail is not justified,” the bench observed.
The verdict was reserved on December 10 after extensive arguments by both sides. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Additional Solicitor General S V Raju appeared for the Delhi Police, while senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Singhvi, Siddhartha Dave, Salman Khurshid and Sidharth Luthra represented the accused.
Khalid, Imam and the other accused were charged under stringent provisions of the UAPA, along with sections of the erstwhile Indian Penal Code, for allegedly being the “masterminds” behind the communal violence in northeast Delhi in February 2020. The riots claimed 53 lives and left more than 700 people injured.
The violence had erupted amid protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).
The accused had moved the Supreme Court challenging a September 2 order of the Delhi High Court, which had denied them bail in what the prosecution described as a larger conspiracy case.
With Monday’s ruling, Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam will continue to remain in judicial custody, while five co-accused will be released on bail, subject to conditions laid down by the court.