The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to Delhi Police on bail pleas of activists Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Gulfisha Fatima and Meeran Haider in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case. The activists have been booked under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria issued notice and posted the matter for October 7.
Last week, the Supreme Court adjourned for the second consecutive time the hearing on bail pleas filed by Khalid, and three others accused in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case. On September 12, Justice Kumar-led bench adjourned the hearing, observing that the voluminous case records had reached their residences past midnight and could not be examined in time.
The activists, who have been awaiting trial, challenged a September 2 Delhi High Court order which denied bail to nine people, including Khalid and Imam. It said "conspiratorial" violence under the garb of demonstrations or protests by citizens could not be allowed.
Other activists who faced bail rejection include Mohd Saleem Khan, Shifa Ur Rehman, Athar Khan, Abdul Khalid Saifi and Shadab Ahmed.
The bail plea of another accused, Tasleem Ahmed, was rejected by a different high court bench on September 2.
{{/usCountry}}The bail plea of another accused, Tasleem Ahmed, was rejected by a different high court bench on September 2.
{{/usCountry}}The high court said the Constitution affords citizens the right to protest and carry out demonstrations or agitations, provided they are orderly, peaceful and without arms, and such actions must be within the bounds of law.
While the high court said the right to participate in peaceful protests and to make speeches in public meetings was said to have been protected under Article 19(1)(a), and couldn't be blatantly curtailed, it observed the right was "not absolute" and "subject to reasonable restrictions".
"If the exercise of an unfettered right to protest were permitted, it would damage the constitutional framework and impinge upon the law and order situation in the country," the bail rejection order said.
Khalid, Imam and the rest of the accused persons were booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the erstwhile Indian Penal Code for allegedly being the "masterminds" of the February 2020 riots, which left 53 people dead and over 700 injured.
The violence erupted during the protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
The accused, who have denied all the allegations against them, have been in jail since 2020 and had moved the high court after a trial court rejected their bail pleas.