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News Topical, Digital Desk : The Supreme Court has rejected the bail pleas of Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, the main accused in the Delhi riots. The court granted bail to five of the riot accused with 12 conditions. Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam have been implicated in inciting the Delhi riots.
On September 2, the Delhi High Court denied bail to the former student leaders, after which they approached the Supreme Court. After hearing the case on December 10, 2025, the Supreme Court reserved its decision.
The Supreme Court today refused to grant bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam. Gulfisha Fatima, Sharjeel Imam, Meeran Haider, Umar Khalid, Shifa-ur-Rehman, Mohammad Shakeel Khan, and Shadab Ahmed were granted conditional bail.
What did the Supreme Court say?
Rejecting the bail pleas of Khalid and Imam, the Supreme Court said it was satisfied that the prosecution had produced sufficient evidence to show the involvement of both of them in the criminal conspiracy.
According to the Supreme Court, all accused cannot be treated equally. The charges against Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam are different from those against other accused. Therefore, the court must consider each bail application individually. Uniformity cannot be applied to all bail applications.
Referring to Article 21 of the Constitution, the Supreme Court said, “Under Article 21, the state has to provide strong evidence to detain someone for a long time before trial. The charges against Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam are proving to be true to a large extent. Therefore, they cannot be granted bail at this stage of the legal proceedings.”
2020 Delhi riots
On February 24, 2020, protests erupted in Delhi against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC). Several individuals, including Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, are accused of making inflammatory speeches, which sparked communal violence in the capital, resulting in the deaths of 53 people and injuries to over 700 others.
Claims in the investigation report
Investigators told the court that the plot was allegedly hatched during US President Donald Trump's official visit to India, with the aim of gaining international media attention and raising the issue of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) globally. According to the investigation report, the issue of the CAA was chosen to "incite radical sentiment" under the guise of “peaceful protests.”
What did Delhi Police say?
The Delhi Police told the court that the accused had deliberately attempted to destabilize the state. This could not be considered a normal protest. It was a well-planned conspiracy to change the government and strangle the country's economy.
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