Delhi riots 2020: HC lists for hearing on Oct 7 Umar Khalid's bail plea in UAPA case

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday listed for hearing on October 7 the bail plea of former JNU student Umar Khalid in a case registered against him under anti-terror law UAPA over the alleged larger conspiracy behind the communal riots that erupted in the national capital in February 2020.

A bench headed by Justice Suresh Kumar Kait also listed for hearing on the same date the pending bail applications of student activist Sharjeel Imam, 'United Against Hate' founder Khalid Saifi, and other co-accused in the case.

Senior counsel appearing for Umar Khalid told the court that the Delhi Police were yet to file a reply to the bail petition on which a notice was issued on July 24.

The bench, also comprising Justice Girish Kathpalia, asked the parties to file written submissions in the matter instead.

"Renotify on October 7. Parties are directed to file written submissions within two weeks," the bench said.

Khalid, who was arrested by the Delhi Police in September 2020, has assailed a trial court order refusing to grant him bail in the case.

Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and several others have been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly being the "masterminds" of the February 2020 riots, which had left 53 people dead and over 700 injured.

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

On May 28, the trial court had rejected Umar Khalid's plea seeking regular bail for a second time, saying its previous order dismissing his first bail application had attained finality.

"When the Delhi High Court has already dismissed the criminal appeal of the applicant (Khalid) vide order dated October 18, 2022, and thereafter, the applicant approached the Supreme Court and withdrew his petition, the order of this court as passed on March 24, 2022 (on the first bail plea), has attained finality and now, in no stretch of imagination this court can make analysis of the facts of the case as desired by the applicant and consider the relief as prayed by him," the trial court had said.

On October 18, 2022, the high court had upheld the dismissal of the first bail plea and said the city police's allegations against him were prima facie true.

The high court had said that admittedly, the anti-CAA protests "metamorphosed into violent riots", which "prima facie seemed to be orchestrated at the conspiratorial meetings" and the statements of the witnesses indicate Khalid's "active involvement" in the protests.

Sharjeel Imam, in his appeal filed in 2022, has assailed a trial court order of April 11, 2022 that denied him bail.

Delhi Police, which arrested Imam in the present case on August 25, 2020, earlier opposed the bail plea on the ground that he mobilised people from the minority community and "propagated" chakka jam (strike) as a mode of disruption with "no window for peaceful protest".

Police claimed the protests were part of a conspiracy to cause violence to coincide with the visit of then US President Donald Trump, and Imam, in his public addresses, propagated the idea of chakka jam as the plan of action to paralyse the government.