Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam denied bail by Delhi high court in 2020 riots case

The Delhi high court on Wednesday refused to grant bail to former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) scholar Umar Khalid and student activist Sharjeel Imam seeking bail in the larger conspiracy case linked to the February 2020 Delhi riots.

A division bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Dinesh Bhatt passed the order.

The court said that the Supreme Court, while denying them bail, had granted them liberty to file for fresh bail either before the examination of protected witnesses or upon expiry of one year, whichever is earlier. The bench said that the high court cannot modify the condition laid down by the Supreme Court.

The case

Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam have been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) on allegations of being one of the masterminds of the February 2020 riots that left 53 people dead and more than 700 injured.

The violence erupted during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019, and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

Activist Khalid Saifi and former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain, among others, were also booked for their alleged involvement in the larger conspiracy case, which was investigated by Delhi Police's Special Cell.

They moved the high court earlier this year after the trial court dismissed their bail applications for the third time on July 4. Imam was arrested in the case on August 25, 2020, while Khalid was arrested on September 13, 2020.

The Delhi Police opposed the pleas in the high court, asserting that the two are the "masterminds" of the riots.