Sharjeel Imam moves Supreme Court seeking bail in UAPA case over 2020 Delhi riots

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The Delhi High Court on September 30 refused to grant bail to Mr. Imam in a case under UAPA on the “larger conspiracy” behind the February 2020 northeast Delhi riots. | Photo Credit: AP

Activist Sharjeel Imam has moved the Supreme Court against a Delhi High Court order refusing him bail in an Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) case on the "larger conspiracy" behind the February 2020 riots in northeast Delhi.

In his plea before the top court, Mr. Imam contended that he should be granted bail as the prosecution has failed to examine witnesses and the one-year embargo imposed by the top court is about to expire.

The petition contended that the charge sheet was filed on September 25, 2020, in which 18 accused face trial and the prosecution has cited more than 900 witnesses, including 47 protected witnesses.

Mr. Imam submitted that despite spending six years and nine months as undertrial, the prosecution has failed to examine even a single witness.

The Delhi High Court on September 30 refused to grant bail to activists Umar Khalid and Mr. Imam in a case under UAPA on the "larger conspiracy" behind the February 2020 northeast Delhi riots.

Asserting that it is bound by "judicial discipline", the high court said it could not modify the Supreme Court's January 5 order asking the two accused to seek bail either on completion of protected witnesses' examination or expiry of one year, whichever is earlier.

Mr. Khalid and Mr. Imam challenged the trial court's July 4 decision rejecting their bail pleas for the third time since their arrest.

The trial court had rejected the bail applications, saying it had "no option but to follow" the Supreme Court's January 5 order and, therefore, could neither entertain the plea nor grant any relief.

The high court had noted that while denying bail to the two accused in January, the top court had said their roles were distinct from the other co-accused, and they were the "ideological drivers" of the alleged conspiracy.

Mr. Khalid and Mr. Imam have been booked under UAPA on allegations of being among 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, being investigated by Delhi Police's Special Cell.

Mr. Imam was arrested in the case on August 25, 2020, while Mr. Khalid was arrested on September 13, 2020.

On September 2, 2025, a high court division Bench denied bail to Mr. Khalid and Mr. Imam.

On January 5, the Supreme Court upheld the verdict but granted relief to co-accused Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohammad Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad.

A Bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria had then observed that there was a prima facie case against Mr. Khalid and Mr. Imam under the UAPA.

Mr. Khalid and Mr. Imam, who have been incarcerated since 2020, can file fresh bail applications after examination of protected witnesses or after one year from today, the SC had said, as it rejected their contention of delay in trial.

On May 22, the top court granted six-month interim bail to co-accused Abdul Khalid Saifi and Tasleem Ahmad, referring the issue of prolonged incarceration of undertrials under UAPA due to stringent prerequisites for bail to a larger Bench.

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