Sharjeel Imam moves Delhi High Court against rejection of bail in Delhi riots conspiracy case

His appeal is listed for hearing on Friday before a Division Bench of Justice Prathiba M Singh and Justice Vikas Mahajan.

Imam has challenged the July 4 order of the Karkardooma Court, which had refused him regular bail.

In his appeal, Imam has said that although more than six months have passed since the Supreme Court's January 5 order, there has been no meaningful progress in the trial. He has submitted that arguments on the framing of charges are still not over, and he has remained in custody for nearly six years.

The appeal, filed through Advocate Ahmad Ibrahim, says that the prolonged delay in the trial and the continued incarceration amount to a change in circumstances justifying the grant of bail.

Imam has also relied on the Supreme Court's May 22 order granting interim bail to co-accused Tasleem Ahmed and referring the legal issue relating to bail under Section 43D(5) of the UAPA to a larger Bench. According to the plea, this is another important development that should be considered while deciding his bail request.

On July 4, Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai of the Karkardooma Court rejected the regular bail pleas of Sharjeel Imam and co-accused Umar Khalid.

The court held that it was bound by the Supreme Court's January 5 order, which had dismissed their earlier bail pleas while allowing them to seek bail again only after the examination of protected witnesses relied upon by the prosecution or after one year, whichever was earlier.

Since neither condition had been met, the trial court held that the bail applications were not maintainable.

The prosecution had opposed the pleas, arguing that there was no significant change in circumstances after the Supreme Court's decision. It also pointed out that Umar Khalid's review petition had already been dismissed by the Supreme Court.

The case relates to the alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 North-East Delhi riots. (ANI)