New Delhi, July 31, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Delhi High Court on Friday issued notice to the Delhi Police on a regular bail plea filed by former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid in the 2020 northeast Delhi riots “larger conspiracy” case registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and other penal provisions.
A Division Bench of Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Vikas Mahajan also issued notice on Khalid’s plea seeking interim bail. The matter, along with the regular bail plea of co-accused Sharjeel Imam, has been listed for further hearing on August 27.
Khalid has challenged the Karkardooma Court’s order refusing him regular bail in the case. Appearing for Khalid, senior advocate Trideep Pais submitted that the interim bail plea was based on the Supreme Court’s decision to refer to a larger Bench the issue of whether prolonged incarceration and delay in trial could justify bail in UAPA cases despite statutory restrictions.
Pais argued that Khalid should be granted interim bail until the larger Bench examines the legal question.
Earlier this month, Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai of the Karkardooma Court had dismissed the fresh bail applications filed by Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, holding that the trial court was bound by the Supreme Court’s January 5 order rejecting their earlier bail pleas.
The trial court had observed that the Supreme Court had allowed the accused to renew their bail requests only after the examination of protected witnesses relied upon by the prosecution or after the expiry of one year from the January 5 order, whichever was earlier.
The defence had argued before the trial court that circumstances had changed following the Supreme Court’s subsequent order granting interim bail to co-accused Tasleem Ahmed and Khalid Saifi and referring the broader UAPA bail issue to a larger Bench.
The prosecution opposed the bail pleas, arguing that there was no substantial change in circumstances and that the Supreme Court had already rejected the bail applications of Khalid and Imam.
The case relates to the alleged larger conspiracy behind the communal violence that broke out in northeast Delhi in February 2020. Khalid, Imam and several others have been booked under the UAPA and various provisions of the Indian Penal Code.
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court had rejected the bail pleas of Khalid and Imam, observing that the prosecution material prima facie attracted the restrictions on bail under Section 43D(5) of the UAPA. The apex court, however, granted bail to five other accused — Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmed.
The Supreme Court later granted six months’ interim bail to co-accused Tasleem Ahmed and Khalid Saifi while referring the question of prolonged incarceration and delayed trials under UAPA to a larger Bench.
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