The Delhi High Court has adjourned the hearing of bail pleas filed by Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and other accused in connection with the UAPA case linked to the 2020 North-East Delhi riots.
The proceedings were postponed because the division bench, consisting of Justice Navin Chawla and Justice Shalinder Kaur, didn’t convene on Monday.
The next hearing is scheduled for November 25.
The cases were listed for a fresh hearing before the newly assigned bench; however, due to the absence of the judges today, the court master provided the new date. It was also noted that the bench would not be sitting tomorrow.
Alongside Khalid and Imam, the new bench was set to address the bail pleas of co-accused individuals, including Mohd. Saleem Khan, Shifa ur Rehman, Shadab Ahmed, Athar Khan, Khalid Saifi, and Gulfisha Fatima.
Additionally, Delhi Police’s appeal against the bail granted to accused Ishrat Jahan was scheduled for discussion today at 3:15 PM.
Umar Khalid had previously been denied bail in October 2022 by a coordinate bench led by Justice Siddharth Mridul. Although he approached the Supreme Court, he later withdrew his Special Leave Petition (SLP).
Khalid subsequently filed a second regular bail plea in the trial court, which was rejected earlier this year. His current appeal challenges the rejection of this second bail request, and a notice was issued by a division bench headed by Justice Suresh Kumar Kait in August.
The bail appeals for other accused individuals have been pending in the Delhi High Court since 2022. The new division bench has been assigned these appeals after previous benches either recused themselves or were unable to fully hear and decide on the cases.
The FIR in question, registered by the Delhi Police’s Special Cell, cites various offenses under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
The accused in this case include Tahir Hussain, Umar Khalid, Khalid Saifi, Ishrat Jahan, Meeran Haider, Gulfisha Fatima, Shifa-Ur-Rehman, Asif Iqbal Tanha, Shadab Ahmed, Tasleem Ahmed, Saleem Malik, Mohd.
Saleem Khan, Athar Khan, Safoora Zargar, Sharjeel Imam, Faizan Khan, and Natasha Narwal.
