New Delhi, July 22, 2024
A Delhi High Court judge on Monday recused himself from hearing the bail plea of former JNU scholar and student activist Umar Khalid who is behind bars since September 2020 under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) in the “larger conspiracy” case related to the 2020 North-East Delhi riots.
After Justice Amit Sharma withdrew himself from hearing the case, the bench presided over by Justice Prathiba M. Singh directed the matter to be listed before a different combination on July 24 after obtaining approval from the Acting Chief Justice.
Before this, a court here on May 28 had rejected Khalid’s application seeking bail on the grounds of delay in completion of trial proceedings and parity with other co-accused who had been enlarged on bail.
Earlier, a trial court in April 2022 dismissed Khalid’s first bail application, and later his appeal was also rejected by the Delhi High Court.
In February this year, Khalid withdrew his special leave petition filed before the Supreme Court seeking bail due to a “change in circumstances” and sought liberty to apply afresh for bail before the trial court.
Khalid has been booked under the stringent anti-terror law and several sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and has been in custody since September 2020.(Agency)
