SC reserves verdict on bail pleas of Khalid, Sharjeel, 4 others in Delhi riots case

The Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved its verdict on petitions filed by Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam and four other accused seeking bail in the Delhi riots larger conspiracy case.

Booked under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), 1967, the six accused — Khalid, Imam, Gulfisha Fatima, Meera Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Md. Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmed — have been in jail for more than five years.

A Bench of Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice NV Anjaria reserved its verdict after Additional Solicitor General SV Raju concluded his arguments on behalf of the Delhi Police.

The accused concluded arguments on their bail pleas on Tuesday.

They are facing charges of criminal conspiracy, sedition, promoting enmity between various groups, making statements conducing to public mischief under the IPC and Section 13 of the UAPA, 1967 for allegedly questioning the sovereignty, unity, or territorial integrity of India and causing disaffection against it.

Besides the UAPA, the accused were also booked under certain provisions of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly being the “masterminds” of the “larger conspiracy” behind the February 2020 Delhi riots during the visit of the then US President Donald Trump that claimed 53 lives and left more than 700 injured. The violence had erupted during the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

Terming the 2020 Delhi riots as an “orchestrated, pre-planned, and well-designed” attack on the sovereignty of India by a “regime change operation” executed under the guise of “peaceful protest”, Delhi Police vehemently opposed the bail pleas of the accused.

On behalf of Umar Khalid, senior advocate Kapil Sibal had submitted that he was not in Delhi when the riots happened in February 2020, and that he cannot be kept incarcerated “as if to say that I will punish you for your protests”.

“You cannot attribute someone else’s speech to me and say I am responsible for the riots,” Sibal submitted.

On behalf of Imam, senior advocate Siddhartha Dave urged the Supreme Court to grant him bail in a February 2020 Delhi riots case, saying he had neither participated nor had any role in the violence and was incarcerated for almost six years as an undertrial.

Besides Dave, senior advocates AM Singhvi, Salman Khurshid, Sidharth Luthra and others also advanced their submissions on behalf of other accused in the case.