Delhi High Court Denies Bail to Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and Others in 2020 Riots Conspiracy Case

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday rejected the bail pleas of former JNU students Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, along with seven other accused, in the “larger conspiracy” case related to the 2020 Delhi riots.

A bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Shalinder Kaur dismissed the bail petitions of activists Gulfisha Fatima, Khalid Saifi (founder of United Against Hate), Athar Khan, Mohd Saleem, Shifa ur Rehman, Meeran Haider, and Shadaab Ahmed. “All the appeals are dismissed,” the bench said while pronouncing its verdict. The court had reserved its judgment on July 9.

In a related ruling, a separate bench comprising Justices Subramonium Prasad and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar also denied bail to another co-accused, Tasleem Ahmad.

### Background of the Case

The case stems from the communal violence that broke out in Northeast Delhi in February 2020, following tensions over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The violence, which lasted several days, claimed 53 lives and left hundreds injured.

The accused had approached the High Court after a trial court denied them bail. Their lawyers argued that they had already spent more than four years in custody, and given the slow pace of the trial, further incarceration was unjust. They also cited the principle of parity, pointing out that others accused in the same case — including activists Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita, and Asif Iqbal Tanha — were granted bail by the High Court in 2021.

### Police Oppose Bail

However, the Delhi Police, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Special Public Prosecutor Amit Prasad, opposed the bail pleas. They maintained that the riots were not a spontaneous outbreak of violence but the result of a “well-planned and orchestrated conspiracy.”

The police alleged that the violence was designed to incite communal hatred, disrupt law and order, and damage India’s global image. According to the prosecution, the conspiracy was carried out in a highly coordinated manner, with deliberate planning regarding the timing, location, and impact of the unrest.

With this ruling, Khalid, Imam, and others will remain in custody as the trial continues.