Supreme Court denies bail to Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam in Delhi riots case

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday denied bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in a case pertaining to an alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 north-east Delhi riots. However, the SC granted bail to Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd. Saleem Khan, and Shadab Ahmad.

The court noted that Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam stand on a “qualitatively different footing” both in terms of prosecution and evidence. It noted that their roles were “central” to the alleged offences. As regards these two, though the period of incarceration is continued and long, it does not violate the Constitutional mandate or override the statutory embargo under the laws.

The SC bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria delivered the judgment on the bail pleas filed by Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmed. On December 10, the apex court had reserved its verdict after hearing detailed arguments from all parties.

During the hearing of their pleas seeking bail, the advocates who appeared for them mostly argued on the delay and the unlikelihood of the commencement of the trial. It was also stated to the court that they have been under custody for over five years in a case in which they are facing serious allegations of committing offences under the UAPA.

The contentions were also made that there is no proof of violence that they instigated the riots, even after five years have passed. On the other hand, Delhi police objected to the bail pleas, saying the alleged offences involved a deliberate attempt to destabilise the state. It argued that these were not spontaneous protests but a well-orchestrated “pan-India” conspiracy aiming at “regime change” and “economic strangulation”.

The Delhi police further submitted that the conspiracy was allegedly planned to coincide with the official visit of the then US President to India, with the intention of drawing international media attention and globalising the issue of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The issue of CAA was carefully chosen to serve as a “radicalising catalyst” camouflaged in the name of “peaceful protest”, it had said.

The prosecution further stated that the “deep-rooted, premeditated and pre-planned conspiracy” hatched by the petitioners resulted in the death of 53 persons, large-scale damage to public property, leading to registration of 753 FIRs in Delhi alone. Evidence on record suggests that the instant conspiracy was sought to be replicated and executed PAN India, the Delhi police said.

On September 2 2025, the Delhi High Court rejected the bail plea of nine accused, including Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, in connection with the case, prompting the defendants to move to the Supreme Court The High Court had observed that, prima facie, the role of Imam and Khalid in the entire conspiracy was “grave”, having delivered inflammatory speeches on communal lines to “instigate mass mobilisation of members of the Muslim community.”

Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam and others were arrested in January 2020 under the stringent provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in the Delhi riots case in February 2020. The violence had erupted during the protests against the then-proposed Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) and had left 53 people dead and over 700 injured. (ANI)