The Delhi High Court on Tuesday dismissed the bail plea of former JNU student Umar Khalid in the UAPA case connected to the 2020 Delhi riots.
"There is no merit in the bail appeal. Bail appeal is dismissed," said a bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Rajnish Bhatnagar.
Khalid, arrested by Delhi Police in September 2020, sought bail on grounds that he neither had any criminal role in the violence in the city's north-east area nor any conspiratorial connect with any other accused in the case. The Delhi Police opposed the bail plea.
The riots erupted in February 2020 during the protests against the controversial CAA and NRC. Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and several others have been booked under the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly being the "masterminds" of the riots. Over 700 people were injured and 53 died in the riots.
The bench stated that Khalid's name finds a recurring mention from the beginning of the conspiracy till the riots, adding that participated in several 'conspiratorial meetings', Live Law reported.
Khalid had moved the Delhi HC after he was denied bail by the trial court on March 24.
-with PTI inputs
