Delhi HC denies early hearing of Sharjeel Imam’s bail plea, pending since 2022 despite 60+ listings : Valley Vision

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday rejected research scholar and Muslim activist Sharjeel Imam’s plea seeking an early hearing of his bail application.

Imam has been charged with conspiracy under the draconian Unlawful Activities Prevention Act in connection with the 2020 Delhi pogrom.

The plea would be heard on the originally scheduled date of October 7, said A division bench of Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Girish Kathpalia.

Imam had contended that his bail plea in the case has been pending since April 2022, despite being listed for hearing more than 60 times before seven benches.

There was no likelihood of the trial being completed soon, as the police had not concluded its investigation, he said to the court.

More than 1,000 witnesses are set to be examined by the court as the research scholar at Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, pointed out.

Imam has been in jail since January 28, 2020.

In January 2020, during the historic agitation against discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC), Imam was charged with draconian acts sedition and UAPA by five Indian states for his speeches against CAA and NRC. Following the huge hate campaign on the Internet and governments’ notices after notices, the Ph.D. student from Bihar surrendered to Delhi Police on 28 January 2020.

In the speeches, Imam had called for a road blockade as a method of protest against CAA. The police in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, and Arunachal Pradesh registered FIRs against the speech and according to their chargesheets, his speech was secessionist and inflammatory.

Police alleged that his speeches had led to protests in Jamia Milia Islamia and also to fuelled tension in the days leading to the 2020 northeast Delhi pogrom. Delhi Police booked Imam in the Delhi pogrom conspiracy case and the Jamia protest case too.

Though Imam got bails in some of the UAPA and the sedition cases, he will continue to remain in custody as he is yet to get bail in Delhi pogrom conspiracy case pending against him.