A Delhi court on Saturday rejected the bail petitions filed by activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the 2020 riots conspiracy case, reported Live Law.
Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai of Karkardooma Courts said that he was bound by the Supreme Court’s order from January that denied them bail, according to Bar and Bench.
In its order rejecting bail for Khalid and Imam, a bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria had said they could file fresh petitions after all protected witnesses are examined or after one year.
The bench had, however, granted bail to Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa-ur-Rehman, Shadab Ahmed and Muhammad Saleem Khan.
Khalid, Imam and the other activists had been arrested between January 2020 and September 2020 in connection with the communal violence that broke out in North East Delhi in February 2020 between supporters of the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act and those opposing it. The violence had left 53 dead and hundreds injured. Most of those killed were Muslims.
The persons accused in the matter 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.
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.
On Saturday, pointing out the conditions laid by the Supreme Court in January for Khalid and Imam to seek bail, the bench said: “Thus, following the said order of the Supreme Court, this court cannot entertain the applications and grant bail to the applicants”.
It added: “In fact, the applications are not maintainable and they are hereby dismissed.”
In their fresh pleas filed in June, the activists contended that despite six months having passed since the Supreme Court denied them bail, there had been no meaningful progress in the trial.
The arguments on the charge are incomplete, Imam had argued, adding that he has been in jail for nearly six years.
Appearing for Khalid on Saturday, advocate Trideep Pais also told the court that there has been no “recovery, no statement leading to any discovery” while he continues to be in custody, reported Live Law.
Khalid and Imam’s fresh applications had come nearly a month after a Supreme Court bench on May 18 criticised the January order, observing that “bail is the rule and jail is an exception” even in prosecutions under the anti-terror law.
The observations criticising the January verdict had been made while hearing an unrelated bail plea of a person booked under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.
On May 22, a Supreme Court bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and PB Varale referred the matter relating to bail in anti-terror law cases involving prolonged incarcerations to a larger bench.
Edited by Sneha.
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