The Delhi High Court on Friday directed the Delhi Police to respond to a fresh bail plea filed by activist Umar Khalid in the alleged larger conspiracy case linked to the 2020 northeast Delhi riots, which is being investigated under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
A division bench of Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Vikas Mahajan issued notice to the Delhi Police and granted it two weeks to file its reply.
Appearing for Khalid, his counsel informed the court that this was his third regular bail application since his arrest in September 2020. The counsel also sought interim bail on his behalf.
The bench scheduled the matter for hearing on August 27, the same day it is set to hear the bail appeal of co-accused Sharjeel Imam.
Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, representing the Delhi Police, submitted that both Khalid and Imam had challenged the same trial court order rejecting their bail applications and requested that the matters be heard together. The court accepted the submission.
Khalid has challenged the July 4 order of the trial court, which declined to grant him bail. The trial court had observed that it was bound by the Supreme Court’s earlier ruling in the case and, therefore, could not entertain or allow the plea.
Khalid was arrested in September 2020 and is among several accused facing charges under the UAPA in the alleged conspiracy behind the communal violence that broke out in northeast Delhi in February 2020. The riots claimed 53 lives and left more than 700 people injured.
The violence occurred during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC). The case is being investigated by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police.
Several others, including Sharjeel Imam, Khalid Saifi and former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain, have also been named as accused in the conspiracy case.
Earlier, on September 2, 2025, the Delhi High Court had refused bail to Khalid. The Supreme Court upheld that decision on January 5, while granting bail to co-accused Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohammad Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad.
In its ruling, the Supreme Court held that there was a prima facie case against Khalid and Imam under the UAPA and observed that the role attributed to each accused differed, making it inappropriate to treat all of them alike while considering bail.
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