Imam has challenged the Delhi High Court order denying bail to him and several others accused in the case, including Umar Khalid.
Sharjeel Imam has moved the Supreme Court seeking bail in the larger conspiracy case under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) in relation to the 2020 North East Delhi riots. [Sharjeel Imam v. State of NCT Delhi]
On September 2, the Delhi High Court had denied bail to him and 8 others – Umar Khalid, Mohd Saleem Khan, Shifa Ur Rehman, Athar Khan, Meeran Haider, Shadab Ahmed, Abdul Khalid Saifi and Gulfisha Fatima.
Imam has challenged the High Court’s decision in his plea before the Supreme Court.
The riots occurred in February 2020, following clashes over the then-proposed Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). As per the Delhi Police, the riots caused the death of 53 persons and injured hundreds.
The present case pertains to allegations that the accused had hatched a larger conspiracy to cause multiple riots. The FIR in this case was registered by a Special Cell of the Delhi Police under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the UAPA.
Most of the accused were booked in multiple FIRs, leading to multiple bail petitions before different courts. Most have been in custody since 2020.
Imam was booked in multiple FIRs across several states, mostly under sedition and UAPA charges.