UAPA case: Supreme Court pulls up Delhi police on bail pleas of Umar Khalid, 3 others; next hearing on Friday

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday deferred till October 31 the hearing on the bail pleas of activists Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Gulfisha Fatima, and Meeran Haider in the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) case linked to the alleged conspiracy behind the February 2020 Delhi riots.

A bench comprising Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria adjourned the matter after Additional Solicitor General S V Raju sought time to file a reply.




Raju requested two weeks to submit his response, but the court decided to take up the matter on Friday instead.

"Frankly speaking, in bail matters there is no question of filing counter," the bench said.

Earlier, on September 22, the top court had issued a notice to the Delhi Police, seeking its response on the matter.

The activists had moved the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi high court’s September 2 order that denied them bail.

The high court had rejected the bail pleas of nine people, including Khalid and Imam, observing that "conspiratorial" violence under the garb of demonstrations or protests could not be allowed.

Apart from Khalid and Imam, the others denied bail include Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Mohd Saleem Khan, Shifa Ur Rehman, Athar Khan, Abdul Khalid Saifi, and Shadab Ahmed. The bail plea of another accused, Tasleem Ahmed, was rejected by a different high court bench on the same day.

The high court stated that while the Constitution grants citizens the right to protest and demonstrate peacefully, such actions must remain within the boundaries of the law.

It said that the right to participate in peaceful protests and make speeches in public meetings is protected under Article 19(1)(a) but clarified that this right is "not absolute" and "subject to reasonable restrictions."

"If the exercise of an unfettered right to protest were permitted, it would damage the constitutional framework and impinge upon the law and order situation in the country," the order said.

Khalid, Imam, and others were charged under the UAPA and various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for allegedly being the "masterminds" behind the February 2020 riots, which left 53 people dead and over 700 injured.

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

The accused, who deny all allegations, have been in jail since 2020 and approached the high court after their bail pleas were rejected by a trial court.
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