What did Delhi Police say about Khalid and Imam's role?

In its response filed before the Delhi High Court on Thursday, the Delhi Police told the top court that it has significant evidence against Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam related to planning, mobilizing people, and playing a strategic role in the 2020 Delhi riots, implicating the duo as the masterminds of the riots.

The High Court, in it last hearing of the Delhi riots case on July 31, had directed the Delhi Police to file a response in the matter.

Why Delhi Police opposed bail plea?

During Thursday's hearing, the police also opposed the bail pleas of Khalid and Imam, saying the applications were 'illegal' and misleading. The Delhi Police noted that the Supreme Court granted bail to other accused in the Delhi riots case, but denied relief to Imam and Khalid, citing their central role in the conspiracy.

The apex court had held that Section 43D(5) of the UAPA was applicable in the case, which provides for strict bail conditions, and had imposed two conditions for granting bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, ruling that the duo could file a fresh bail plea only after testimony of key witnesses in the case or after one year of the verdict, the police said.

Since neither of these conditions have been met, their bail applications should not be heard at this stage, the Delhi Police said in its response.

Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam have been in jail since their 2020 arrest in the Delhi riots case. The two were arrested, along with others, for being the central figures in the February 2020 riots that had left 53 people dead and more than 700 injured, when violence erupted in Northeast Delhi during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019, and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

SC seeks response from Delhi Police

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has sought a response from the Delhi Police on a plea filed by Athar Khan, another main accused in the case, seeking bail under the anti-terror law UAPA concerning the 'larger conspiracy' behind the February 2020 riots.

The Delhi High Court had dismissed Athar's appeal challenging the trial court's January 29 order that denied him relief in the case, stating that he was but 'one of the main conspirators who conspired to cause deaths during the riots' and not a 'mere local-level operator'.

Athar's lawyer had sought bail on the grounds that he was a 'local-level facilitator' who had been in custody for six years, and that similarly placed co-accused had been granted bail by the Supreme Court.