The Supreme Court on Wednesday adjourned for 31st Jan the hearing on the bail plea of former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid in an Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), a case relating to North-East Delhi communal riots in 2020.
A bench of Justices Bela Trivedi and Ujjal Bhuyan adjourned the hearing as Justice Trivedi had to attend another hearing after lunch. The court said in a brief order, “List on January 31st, high on the board.”
Khalid’s Arrest 
In Sept 2022, communal violence erupted during the protest against CAA and NRC, leaving 53 people dead and over 700 injured. Umar Khalid was arrested by the Delhi Police and was charged with rioting, unlawful assembly, and criminal conspiracy. Besides Khalid, Natasha Narwal, Devangan Kalita, and Asif Iqbal Tanha, who were also booked under UAPA, have been released.
Delays in Khalid’s bail
Khalid had filed a special leave petition challenging the decision of the Delhi High Court to deny him bail. He also filed a writ petition challenging various provisions under the UAPA.
The hearing of Khalid’s bail plea has seen multiple delays and adjournments. First, in March 2022, bail was rejected by the trial court in Delhi, and then it went to the Delhi High Court in Oct 2022 and held a trial court order. Lastly, in May 2023, Khalid approached the Supreme Court, and the hearing was adjourned twice, once on July 12th, 2023, and then again on July 24th.
On January 10, Khalid’s bail plea had been adjourned to January 24, which was the sixth such adjournment in a row. During the hearing, the bench of Justices Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal had warned that no further adjournment would be granted.
