NEW DELHI — After five years of incarceration, Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam and others, accused in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case and booked under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, still have to wait for their chance to seek bail as Supreme Court on Friday adjourned hearing on their bail pleas till Monday, September 22.
A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and Manmohan deferred hearing on the batch of special leave petitions (SLPs) after an adjournment was sought on the petitioners’ behalf.
Earlier on September 12, the Supreme Court adjourned to September 19 bail pleas of all the student leaders and activists. The matter had then come up before a bench comprising Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria. The bench had then told the counsel representing the petitioners that it received the files very late and adjourned the cases to September 19.
Tthe Delhi High Court September 2 dhad denied bail to several activists and student leaders in connection with the alleged larger conspiracy behind the North-East Delhi riots. The Bench of Justices Shalinder Kaur and Navin Chawla observed, prima facie, that there was sufficient material on record to suggest that I mam and Khalid had masterminded the conspiracy.
The Justice Kaur-led Bench noted that Khalid and Imam had delivered inflammatory speeches on February 24, 2020, coinciding with the then US President Donald Trump’s State visit, which the prosecution alleged was deliberately timed to trigger riots on February 23 – 24 and draw international attention.
“The alleged inflammatory and provocative speeches delivered by the appellants, when considered in totality, prima facie indicate their role in the alleged conspiracy,” the Delhi High Court said.
In relation to Meeran Haider, it noted that she allegedly provided funds to the Alumni Association of Jamia Millia Islamia (AAJMI), where meetings of the JCC (JMI Coordination Committee) were held.
The Justice Kaur-led bench further noted the prosecution’s submission that the completion of the investigation against Haider did not constitute a material change in circumstances to justify bail, citing pending witness examination and the gravity of the alleged conspiracy.
According to the prosecution, Gulfisha Fatima used code words to instruct protesters to undertake actions in furtherance of the alleged conspiracy and received funds for it.
The February 2020 Delhi riots, which broke out during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), left 53 people dead and more than 700 injured. — With inputs from IANS
