A Delhi court on Monday granted a 10-day interim bail to activist Sharjeel Imam, who is accused of being part of a larger conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots, Live Law reported.
Imam was granted bail from March 20 to March 30 to attend his brother’s wedding, which is scheduled for March 25, ANI reported.
Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai of Karkardooma Courts imposed a personal bond of Rs 50,000 and two sureties of a similar amount, the news agency reported.
Imam’s counsel had told the court that his client had been in prison for five years without being released on bail even temporarily.
The court directed that during the interim bail period, Imam cannot contact witnesses or persons related to the case. He will only be allowed to meet his family and remain at his home or at the places where the marriage ceremonies will take place, the court said.
Imam was also directed not to speak with the media or use social media, ANI reported.
He was arrested in January 2020 in connection with speeches made in Delhi, Aligarh, Asansol and Chakband during protests against the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens.
Communal violence had broken out in North East Delhi in February 2020 between supporters of the Act and those opposing it. The violence had left 53 dead and hundreds injured. Most of those killed were Muslims.
The police have claimed that the violence was part of a larger conspiracy to defame the Narendra Modi government and was planned by those who organised the protests against the amended Citizenship Act.
According to the police chargesheet, Imam’s speeches had incited members of the Muslim community, which had, in turn, triggered riots.
The persons accused in the conspiracy case have been charged under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, the Arms Act and sections of the Indian Penal Code.
On January 8, the Supreme Court had granted bail to five accused in the conspiracy case but denied the same to Imam and Umar Khalid, holding that all those named in the case did not stand on the same footing.
The bench observed that the two were “masterminds” and the material on record made out a “prima facie case” against them under the anti-terror law.
Also read: Why SC denied bail to Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam but awarded it to five other anti-CAA activists
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