2020 Delhi riots: Umar Khalid moves Supreme Court after HC denies bail

PTC News Desk: Activist Umar Khalid has moved the Supreme Court against the Delhi High Court’s recent decision denying him bail in the UAPA case tied to the alleged conspiracy behind the February 2020 Delhi riots. On September 2, the High Court had dismissed the bail petitions of nine accused, including Khalid and fellow activist Sharjeel Imam, stating that violence “in the guise of protests or demonstrations” cannot be condoned. 

Others whose pleas were turned down include Mohd Saleem Khan, Shifa Ur Rehman, Athar Khan, Meeran Haider, Abdul Khalid Saifi, Gulfisha Fatima, and Shadab Ahmed. On the same day, a separate bench also rejected the bail application of another accused, Tasleem Ahmad. Notably, Imam and Fatima had already approached the apex court last week challenging the HC’s ruling.

In its verdict, the Delhi High Court underlined that while the Constitution protects the right to protest under Article 19(1)(a), the right is not absolute and must remain within “reasonable restrictions.” “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 bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Shalinder Kaur observed.

The accused face charges under the UAPA and IPC for allegedly orchestrating the riots, which claimed 53 lives and injured over 700 people amid protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).

The High Court pleas came after trial courts had earlier refused bail. The accused argued that they have spent over four years in jail without trial being completed, and sought equal treatment with co-accused Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita, and Asif Iqbal Tanha, who were granted bail back in 2021.