Top Court Notice To Cops On Bail Plea Of Umar Khalid, 7 Others In Delhi Riots Case

The Supreme Court on Monday sought Delhi Police's response on the bail pleas of activists Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Gulfisha Fatima, and Meeran Haider in the UAPA case related to the alleged conspiracy behind the February 2020 riots in Delhi.

New Delhi: A bench comprising Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria issued notice to Delhi Police and scheduled the hearing for October 27 regarding bail applications filed by several activists in connection with the 2020 Delhi riots case.

As proceedings began, Justice Kumar explained that the matter could not be heard on September 19 because Justice Manmohan, who was previously on the bench, had to recuse himself due to his prior association with senior advocate Kapil Sibal's chambers.

Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing Gulfisha Fatima, emphasized that the petitioners were students who had already been incarcerated for over five years. When he requested consideration of interim bail, the Supreme Court indicated its intention to fully resolve the main petition instead.

The activists are challenging the Delhi High Court's September 2 order that denied bail to nine individuals including Khalid and Imam. In its decision, the high court stated that "conspiratorial" violence disguised as demonstrations or protests could not be permitted in a constitutional democracy.

Besides Khalid and Imam, bail was also rejected for Fatima, Haider, Mohd Saleem Khan, Shifa Ur Rehman, Athar Khan, Abdul Khalid Saifi, and Shadab Ahmed. In a separate ruling on the same day, another high court bench denied bail to Tasleem Ahmed.

The high court acknowledged that while the Constitution guarantees citizens the right to protest and demonstrate peacefully without arms, such rights must remain within legal boundaries. It observed that although the right to participate in peaceful protests and deliver speeches at public gatherings is protected under Article 19(1)(a), this right "is not absolute" and remains "subject to reasonable restrictions."

According to the bail rejection order, "If the exercise of an unfettered right to protest were permitted, it would damage the constitutional framework and impinge upon the law and order situation in the country."

The accused have been charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the former Indian Penal Code for allegedly being the "masterminds" behind the February 2020 riots, which resulted in 53 deaths and injured over 700 people.

The violence erupted during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens. All the accused have denied the allegations against them and have been imprisoned since 2020. They approached the high court after a trial court previously rejected their bail applications.