The Delhi High Court has issued a notice to the Delhi Police regarding student activist Sharjeel Imam’s bail plea in the 2020 northeast Delhi riots “larger conspiracy” case. A Division Bench of Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Vikas Mahajan has scheduled further hearing for August 27. Imam has contested the Karkardooma Court’s decision denying him regular bail under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and other legal provisions.
Imam and co-accused Umar Khalid had their regular bail pleas rejected by Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai earlier this month. The trial court cited the Supreme Court’s January 5 order denying them bail as the basis for its decision. The court emphasized that the accused could only reapply for bail after the examination of protected witnesses or one year from the Supreme Court’s order.
Imam argued before the trial court that there had been significant delays in the trial proceedings since the Supreme Court’s bail denial in January. Despite being in custody for nearly six years, he highlighted the lack of progress in the trial process. The Supreme Court had previously denied bail to Imam and Khalid, citing grounds under Section 43D(5) of the UAPA, while granting bail to five other co-accused.
