The Supreme Court on Monday denied bail to activist Umar Khalid and scholar Sharjeel Imam in a case linked to an alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 north-east Delhi riots, observing that the two stood on a “qualitatively different footing” from other accused.
The court, however, granted bail to Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd. Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad in the same matter.
In its order, the Supreme Court said Khalid and Imam had played “central” roles in the alleged offences. It noted that while their incarceration had been long, it did not violate constitutional safeguards or override the statutory bar under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The court added that all accused could not be treated on the same qualitative footing.
Reacting to the ruling, Congress leader and Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge criticised the judicial system, alleging that bail was being granted to those accused in rape cases while being denied to individuals he said were jailed for raising their voices against the government. In a post on X, Kharge cited cases involving Kuldeep Singh Sengar, Asaram Bapu, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
Welcome to #ViksitBharat where you are jailed for raising your voice and get a bail for being a rapist. pic.twitter.com/UxJvdX0y6M
— Priyank Kharge / ಪ್ರಿಯಾಂಕ್ ಖರ್ಗೆ (@PriyankKharge) January 5, 2026
The Bharatiya Janata Party responded, with spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla saying the Supreme Court had found the charges against Khalid and Imam to be prima facie valid. He said the allegations included terrorism-related offences and violence during the Delhi riots.
Another BJP spokesperson, Pradeep Bhandari, said the court’s decision was a setback for the Congress and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi.
Khalid, Imam and others were arrested in January 2020 under stringent provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in connection with the February 2020 violence in north-east Delhi. The violence, which broke out during protests against the proposed Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizens, left 53 people dead and more than 700 injured.
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