Delhi HC grants bail to Salim Malik in 2020 northeast Delhi ‘larger conspiracy’ case

Delhi High Court grants bail to Salim Malik in 2020 northeast Delhi riots case, noting similarities to other released co-accused and his lengthy custody.

The Delhi High Court on Thursday granted bail to Salim Malik in the alleged larger conspiracy case linked to the 2020 northeast Delhi riots.

The bench ordered his release on bail, noting that other individuals accused in the case had been released on bail by the Supreme Court earlier this year.

A bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Madhu Jain ordered his release on bail, noting that other individuals accused in the case had been released on bail by the Supreme Court earlier this year.

“After having considered the role of the appellant, this court is of the view that the same is similar to the role which is attributed to Mohd. Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad who had also participated in the meetings, protest and chakka jams. There is no major distinction between the role of the appellant and the role of Mohd. Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad. The appellant has been in custody for more than five years and ten months as per the latest nominal roll. The stage of the trial is that arguments on charge are being presently heard. Accordingly, the trial is going to take some time,” the bench stated.

In January 2026, the top court denied bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots but ordered the release of five other co-accused, including Shifa-ur-Rehman, Mohd Saleem Khan, Meeran Haider, Shadab Ahmed and Gulfisha Fatima.

The court had said that, considering the roles attributed to the five accused, the nature of the material relied upon by the prosecution, and the stage of the proceedings, their liberty could be secured through strict safeguards. It underlined that the grant of bail neither diluted the gravity of the allegations nor amounted to any determination of guilt, but reflected a calibrated exercise of constitutional discretion balancing individual liberty with national security.

The order was passed days after the SC bench of justices BV Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan, on May 18, openly questioned the reasoning adopted by another two-judge bench, headed by Justice Aravind Kumar, in January this year, while denying bail to Khalid and activist Imam in the alleged larger conspiracy case linked to the 2020 northeast Delhi riots.

On February 23, 2020, amid protests against the then-proposed Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC), communal violence erupted in northeast Delhi, leaving 53 people dead and hundreds injured.

Salim was arrested by the police in June 2020 and booked under the stringent anti-terror law, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly putting up tents, banners, and giving provocative hate speeches to the crowd that gathered in the Chand Bagh area, where protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) were ongoing.

Salim, along with other associates, instigated people to join protests against the Centre in the name of religion, managed the stage, introduced speakers, and distributed langar, according to the FIR.

The trial court rejected his bail on January 29, following which he approached the high court. In his petition, Salim had asserted that his case was “squarely covered” as per the SC’s verdict granting bail to the five co-accused

Delhi Police, represented by Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, along with advocate Dhruv Pande, opposed the bail.