Delhi court rejects Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam’s bail applications in riots case in the northeast of the city in 2020, holding that it would go against principles the case for the applicant in the Supreme Court.
In its order, the court noted that the cases of co-accused Gulfisha Fatima and Syed Iftikhar Andrabi have already been forwarded to a bigger ben of judges. With this as a standing consideration, the court said that it was legally barred from doing anything more than looking at the bail pleas of Khalid and Imam on the basis of the issue.
The Special Court also highlighted that it is required to follow guidelines issued by the Supreme Court which had rejected bail for both the accused persons previously granted. The Bench said it could not deviate from the direction of the Apex Court until the issues the matter between authorities before the larger Bench are “clearly decided.”
Additional charges against various sections of the law including Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) have been brought against members of the group involved in the larger conspiracy behind the riots which took place in northeast Delhi in 2020, such as Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam.
The court stated that its ruling hinged “on current legal circumstances and on restrictions of procedure,” and pointed out that “the court does not have the means of ruling on the merits of the accusations.” The questions before the bigger bench, it said, will have to be resolved first before any fresh hearing on the bail applications could be made.
The case still continues to be one of the most closely watched legal battles since the rioting that broke out in the northeast areas of Delhi in 2020.