Day after SC says bail remains rule under UAPA, Delhi court rejects Umar Khalid's interim bail plea

A Delhi court on Tuesday rejected jailed activist Umar Khalid's plea for interim bail, a day after the Supreme Court of India reiterated that “bail is the rule and jail the exception” even in cases registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai dismissed Khalid’s application seeking 15 days of interim bail to attend the 40-day post-death ritual, or Chehlum, of his uncle and to care for his mother, who is scheduled to undergo surgery.

The court's detailed order was not immediately available.

The development came a day after a Supreme Court bench of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan, while granting bail to an accused in a Jammu and Kashmir narco-terror case, stressed that prolonged incarceration could not be justified merely because stringent provisions of the UAPA had been invoked.

The apex court also observed that constitutional guarantees of personal liberty and speedy trial could not be indefinitely overridden by statutory restrictions and reaffirmed that “bail is the rule and jail is the exception” even in UAPA cases.

Bail sought on humanitarian grounds

Khalid had approached the trial court seeking temporary release on humanitarian grounds, stating that he needed to be present for family obligations following his uncle’s death and to assist his ailing mother during her medical treatment.

However, the court declined to grant the relief sought.

Khalid is among several accused facing prosecution in the larger conspiracy case linked to the February 2020 northeast Delhi riots.

Accused in Delhi riots conspiracy case

Investigating agencies have charged Khalid and others under the UAPA and provisions of the erstwhile Indian Penal Code, alleging that they were among the principal conspirators behind the violence that erupted in northeast Delhi in February 2020.

The riots left 53 people dead and more than 700 injured.

The violence occurred amid protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens.

Khalid has denied the allegations and remains in judicial custody as proceedings in the case continue.