New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday refused to grant bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the alleged conspiracy case linked to the 2020 Delhi riots, saying a prima facie case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) was made out against them.
A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N.V. Anjaria, however, granted bail to co-accused Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa ur Rahman, Mohammed Salim Khan and Shadab Ahmed.
The bench said it was satisfied that the prosecution had disclosed a prima facie case against Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam. It said the stage of the proceedings did not justify extending the benefit of bail to them.
The top court had reserved its verdict on December 10 after hearing arguments from Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju appearing for the Delhi Police and senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Singhvi, Siddharth Dave, Salman Khurshid and Siddharth Luthra representing the accused.
Khalid, Imam and other accused have been booked under the UAPA and other provisions. Opposing their bail pleas earlier, the Delhi Police said the February 2020 riots were not spontaneous but the result of a pre-planned conspiracy aimed at attacking the sovereignty of India. The police said Imam’s speeches were linked to other accused and could be used as evidence in the case.
Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju argued that all persons involved in the alleged conspiracy were responsible for each other’s acts. He also said Khalid had deliberately left Delhi before the riots took place.
