Why did the Supreme Court grant bail to five accused in the Delhi riots case? They were granted bail on 12 conditions.

News Topical, Digital Desk : On Monday, January 5th, the Supreme Court delivered a significant verdict in a case related to the conspiracy behind the Delhi riots. The top court denied bail to student activists Sharjeel Imam and Umar Khalid,  while granting bail to five other accused . In its verdict, the Supreme Court said it could not treat all individuals equally when it came to granting bail. The Supreme Court also granted bail to five other individuals named in the case: Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa ur Rehman, Mohammad Salim Khan, and Shadab Ahmed.

Five accused got bail from the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court said, "The record shows that all the appellants are not equally situated with respect to the offence. The court will have to evaluate each application separately for the order of participation. Under Article 21, the State will have to justify the prolonged pretrial detention."

Sharjeel Imam and Umar Khalid had challenged the Delhi High Court order denying them bail in a case registered under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) related to the alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots.

2020 Delhi riots case

On February 24, 2020, communal clashes broke out in Northeast Delhi during widespread protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC). The riots lasted for several days, leaving over 50 people dead and over 700 injured.

Twenty people, including Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam and former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain, were charged for their alleged involvement in the conspiracy to incite the riots.

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