Supreme Court Reviews Khalid's Bail Plea in 2020 Delhi Riots Case

Student activist Umar Khalid seeks Supreme Court review for denied bail in the 2020 Delhi riots case. His legal counsel, Kapil Sibal, requests an open-court hearing. The Supreme Court had earlier denied bail citing involvement under UAPA, but reviews are ongoing.

Student activist Umar Khalid, implicated in the 2020 Delhi riots case, petitioned the Supreme Court on Monday for a review of a decision that denied him bail, urging for the petition to be held in open court. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Khalid, appealed to Justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria for the review petition to be listed for open-court deliberation.

During the proceedings, Sibal mentioned that the matter would be addressed on April 16 when it comes up for consideration in chambers, and they have submitted an application for an open-court hearing. Justice Kumar remarked, "We will review the papers. If necessary, we might summon it."

Previously, on January 5, the Supreme Court denied bail to Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, asserting that there were legitimate grounds to trust the accusations against them regarding the conspiracy behind the 2020 north-east Delhi riots. They had contested the Delhi High Court's order rejecting their bail applications in the UAPA case associated with the supposed broader conspiracy fueling the riots.

Although the apex court denied bail to Khalid and Imam, it approved it for five others, noting that all accused did not merit similar consideration. It was suggested that Khalid and Imam, who have been detained since 2020, could submit new bail applications following the examination of protected witnesses or after a year from the decision's issuance. The top court stated that there was a prima facie case against them under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and highlighted prosecution material indicating their involvement in the "planning, mobilization, and strategic direction" of the riots.

Khalid was detained on September 13, 2020, for allegedly making inflammatory speeches on February 24 and 25, during Donald Trump's visit to India in his first tenure as the U.S. president. The February 2020 north-east Delhi riots erupted amid protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC), resulting in 53 deaths and over 700 injuries.

As part of its investigation, Delhi Police arrested 18 individuals in the conspiracy case, among which 11 have received bail up to this point.

(With inputs from agencies.)