NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday raised its concern over the “endless” arguments by the prosecution over the bail plea of Khalid Saifi, an accused in a UAPA case linking to the 2020 Delhi riots.
A Division Bench comprising Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Manoj Jain said, it is not hearing appeals against conviction or acquittal but only with bail pleas and arguments which cannot go on endlessly.
During the hearing, while the special public prosecutor Amit Prasad cited WhatsApp chats and other details from the chargesheet to show the role of various accused persons in the alleged riots conspiracy case, the bench expressed its dissatisfaction in going further.
As the reference of WhatsApp chats, allegedly related to the riots, progressed, the court asked the prosecution to provide evidence showing it as a clear case of violence.
“..One can understand you need one hour, quarter of an hour. But we cannot grant unlimited time. Show us what is the conspiracy and what is the person’s role. Summarise your arguments. We are not hearing appeals but only bail… We are not going to read 7,000 pages,” the court orally remarked.
It further said, “We are not looking for a story. Show us the material, point out his role, we will consider…If there is no case with you, we can say no case. We can grant bail. Give us material against him.”
The bench said it needed to see the matter on merit, saying the court cannot “hear it for days.”