SUPREME COURT SET TO DELIVER VERDICT ON BAIL PLEAS OF UMAR KHALID, SHARJEEL IMAM, GULFISHA FATIMA & OTHERS IN 2020 DELHI RIOTS CONSPIRACY CASE ON JANUARY 5:

The Supreme Court is scheduled to deliver its verdict on Monday regarding the bail petitions filed by Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd. Saleem Khan, and Shadab Ahmed in connection with the larger conspiracy case linked to the 2020 Delhi riots. A bench led by Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice NV Anjaria wrapped up hearings in December 2025 on these petitions, which challenge a September 2 judgment from the Delhi High Court that rejected their bail requests. The petitioners have remained in custody for more than five years, facing grave charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

In their submissions, the petitioners emphasized the prolonged delays in the trial and the improbability of it starting soon. Representing Gulfisha Fatima, Senior Advocate Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi highlighted that she has been detained for nearly six years and is the only female accused denied bail, despite facing allegations similar to or less severe than those against co-accused like Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal, who were released in 2021. He pointed out that claims of a "regime change" plot do not appear in the main chargesheet or any of the four supplementary ones, the most recent from 2023. Singhvi described the repeated adjournments of her bail hearings, listed 90 times, with 25 instances of bench unavailability and 26 renotifications, as a mockery of the justice system, arguing that keeping the 32-year-old in custody serves no public interest.

For Umar Khalid, Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal stressed that Khalid was not in Delhi during the February 2020 riots. The speech referenced by the prosecution, delivered in Amaravati, actually advocated for non-violent, Gandhian-style protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. During the hearing, the petitioners played the speech in court. Sibal noted that students often protest, sometimes intensely, but this should not lead to indefinite incarceration. He explained that common protest tactics like roadblocks or rail disruptions, even if technically unlawful, do not qualify as terrorist acts under UAPA. References were made to prior rulings in cases like Vernon and Shoma Sen, where courts took a more lenient stance on bail in UAPA matters.

Senior Advocate Siddharth Dave, appearing for Sharjeel Imam, argued that Imam's speeches, which the prosecution played in court, are already the subject of separate prosecutions. Imam has been in custody since January 2020, before the riots for those speeches, which at most fall under Section 13 of UAPA but not Section 15 defining terrorist acts. Dave contended that additional evidence beyond the speeches is needed to implicate Imam in the conspiracy, especially since he was already detained and not physically present. He objected to labels like "intellectual terrorist" or "anti-national" applied by authorities, emphasizing the presumption of innocence.

Senior Advocate Salman Khursid, for Shifa Ur Rehman, argued that the worst allegation against Rehman involves misusing his role as president of the Alumni Association of Jamia Millia Islamia to fund protests, but no such funds have been recovered. For Meeran Haider, Senior Advocate Siddhartha Agarwal focused on delays attributable to the prosecution, noting that charge arguments were delayed from September 2023 to September 2024 due to incomplete investigations. Senior Advocate Siddhartha Luthra, for Shadab Ahmed, submitted that call detail records initially showed Ahmed was not at the protest site, but police later shifted their position. Advocate Gautam Khazanchi, for Mohd. Saleem Khan, cited a precedent from the Shaheen Welfare Association case on prolonged detention under stringent anti-terror laws.

The Delhi Police countered that the protests were not spontaneous but part of a coordinated pan-India conspiracy aimed at regime change and economic disruption, evidenced by WhatsApp groups like the Delhi Protest Support Group and Jamia Awareness Campaign Team. They attributed delays to the petitioners and claimed the trial could conclude in two years with cooperation. Additional Solicitor General SV Raju described the accused as educated but dangerous individuals posing a societal threat. He played video snippets of Imam's speeches calling for nationwide blockades, Muslim unity to isolate regions like Assam, and disruptions to essential supplies and government functions, while questioning trust in courts. The police argued against parity with bailed co-accused, claiming the 2021 Delhi High Court order was based on a flawed UAPA interpretation. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta added that public statements by the accused indicated a premeditated attack on national sovereignty.

In rebuttal, ASG Raju invoked principles of criminal conspiracy from cases like a 2013 judgment and the Rajiv Gandhi assassination, asserting that once cognizance under Section 120B IPC is taken, material against one accused applies to others. He blamed postponements on the accused's demands for further investigation and dismissed claims of prosecutorial delay from supplementary chargesheets. Raju presented evidence including protected witness statements, digital chats on platforms like Signal, deleted messages, and meetings attended by Khalid from December 2019 to February 2020 at locations such as the Indian Social Institute, Shaheen Bagh, the Popular Front of India office, and Seelampur. Call records, he said, confirmed Khalid's presence. He refuted hearsay objections and clarified that Khalid's discharge in a related case was procedural, not merit-based, concluding that parity arguments do not favour the accused and many defense claims are inaccurate.

These special leave petitions stem from the Delhi High Court's September 2 denial of bail. The petitioners, prominent student activists in anti-CAA protests, face UAPA and IPC charges for allegedly masterminding the February 2020 communal riots. Other accused include Tahir Hussain, Khalid Saifi, Ishrat Jahan, Asif Iqbal Tanha (bailed in 2021), Tasleem Ahmed, Saleem Malik, Athar Khan, Safoora Zargar (bailed on humanitarian grounds), Faizan Khan, and those already granted bail like Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal.