• By Soumyaroop Mukherjee
  • Mon, 22 Sep 2025 04:45 PM (IST)
  • Source:JND
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The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Delhi Police in response to the bail pleas of Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Gulfisha Fatima and Meeran Haider, who have been implicated in a UAPA case related to the February 2020 riots in Delhi. 

A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria issued the notice and posted the matter for October 7. Earlier, the activists had challenged a September 2 Delhi High Court ruling that denied bail to nine people, including Khalid and Imam. The high court took up the case of Umar as an example and stated that ‘conspirational’ violence cannot be allowed under the garb of demonstrations or protests by citizens.

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The people whose bail pleas were rejected by the Delhi High Court are: 

  • Umar Khalid

  • Sharjeel Imam

  • Gulfisha Fatima

  • Meeran Haider

  • Mohammad Saleem Khan

  • Shifa-ur-Rehman

  • Athar Khan

  • Abdul Khalid Saifi

  • Shadab Ahmed

The high court said that while the Constitution allows citizens the right to protest and voice out their opinions, people should measure their actions that fall within the boundaries of law. 

The high court acknowledged that the right to participate in peaceful protests and to make speeches is allowed under Article 19(1)(A). However, 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.

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Case Against Umar Khalid

Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and the rest of the accused people were booked under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the erstwhile Indian Penal Code. They have been accused of being the "masterminds" of the February 2020 riots, which left 53 people dead and over 700 injured. 

All of them have denied the allegations levied against them. Umar and the rest of the accused have filed many bail petitions while continuing to stay behind bars since 2020.

Delhi riots remain one of the darkest chapters in the protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).