Sharjeel Imam moves Supreme Court seeking bail in Delhi Riots case
UAPA accused Sharjeel Imam has now knocked on the doors of Supreme Court of India seeking bail in the Delhi riots larger conspiracy case.
Imam has filed a Special Leave petition before the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi High Court's September 2nd order denying bail to him, Umar Khalid, and seven others. The High Court held “violence in the name of protest is not free speech” as it dismissed the bail pleas of Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and seven others.
A Division Bench of Justice Navin Chawla and Justice Shalinder Kaur, in a detailed 133-page verdict, said,“Any conspiratorial violence under the garb of protests or demonstrations by the citizens cannot be permitted. Such actions must be regulated and checked by the State Machinery, as they do not fall within the ambit of the Freedom of Speech, Expression, and Association.”
Court held that the role of Sharjeel Imam and Umar Khalid is prima facie grave in the entire conspiracy, noting that they had delivered inflammatory speeches on communal lines to instigate a mass mobilization of members of the Muslim community. The plea of parity with co-accused was also rejected. The judges said that although others were present in conspiratorial meetings and WhatsApp groups, their role was “limited when juxtaposed with these Appellants.”
The prosecution alleged that both Imam and Khalid were masterminds of the conspiracy. It submitted that Imam either himself formed or directed others to form various WhatsApp groups linking Jamia, DU and AMU students after the Citizenship Amendment Bill was passed on 04.12.2019, attended conspiratorial meetings, and gave inflammatory speeches across India in Aligarh, Asanol and Chakand. Umar Khalid was alleged to have delivered a speech in Amravati on 17.02.2020, urging protests to coincide with the State visit of the U.S. President, allegedly timed to provoke violence and draw international attention.
“These roles… cannot be lightly brushed aside,” the High Court observed, adding that prima facie Imam and Khalid were the first to act after the CAB was passed, creating WhatsApp groups and distributing pamphlets in Muslim-populated areas calling for protests and chakka-jams, including disruption of essential supplies.
On July 9, 2025, the High Court had reserved its verdict after briefly hearing submissions from the prosecution as well as from counsels representing the accused persons, namely Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Mohd. Saleem Khan, Shifa-ur-Rehman, Athar Khan, Khalid Saifi, Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, and Shadab.
The prosecution, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, strongly opposed the bail pleas of the accused, arguing, “This is not a question of bail, just bail, as in any other case. We are dealing with well-organised and orchestrated riots that began in the capital at a particular time and day. Even though prolonged incarceration is generally a ground for bail, it cannot apply when one is hell-bent on bleeding the nation and breaking it into two parts.” "Imam and Khalid used this particular day (of the riots) to defame India on a global level. I will show documents to prove why the bench must not treat this as any other bail matter. The well determined and well orchestrated mechanisms will show deviations which lead to no ground of bail," the SG had submitted. The top law officer also described the investigation as one of the finest he had ever seen: "To satisfy conscience of the court, there are 58 statements recorded under section 164 (of the CrPC)," he told the bench.
The Solicitor General had also referred to statements of protected witnesses recorded before the magistrate to demonstrate that the riots were orchestrated and pre-planned by “kingpins.” He highlighted Imam’s speech of January 23, 2020," which says - "Humare paas 4 hafte hain, agle sunwayi tak, sarkar toh chhodo, court ko uski nani yaad ajaye,Clear, unambiguous intention to put India to shame, when President of a nation was to visit our country. They say in a chat, 'Trump will be in Delhi on 24th-25th February. Can we do something that will affect delhi?' They say "Delhi" as if its a foreign country. On 23rd February, 2020, the riots in delhi broke. How the global media took this case - that was their intention. They wanted the global media to take note of this and the country is defamed."
Imam’s bail plea, too, had been rejected by Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai on February 11, 2022, observing that his speeches were intended to create “public disorder” and “incitement to violence” while also appearing to challenge the territorial integrity and sovereignty of India. The Supreme Court had more recently refused to entertain Imam’s Article 32 petition, noting that he could not have approached the top court while his bail plea was pending before the High Court.
The accused have been charged under stringent provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) as well as sections of the Indian Penal Code relating to criminal conspiracy, promoting enmity, rioting, and murder. The case stems from the violence that erupted in Northeast Delhi in 2020 during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The clashes between supporters and opponents of the Act led to large-scale incidents of stone-pelting, arson, and violence, leaving 53 people dead and injuring thousands.
Case Title: Sharjeel Imam vs. State of NCT of Delhi