Delhi riots: UAPA accused Sharjeel Imam seeks bail, says prosecution has no evidence

NEW DELHI:  JNU student Sharjeel Imam, arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the sedition law, has moved a bail plea before a Delhi court in a case related to making allegedly inflammatory speeches during the anti-CAA/NRC protests.

In the bail plea, which came up for hearing before Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat on Thursday, Imam claimed he never participated in or encouraged any violence during any protest or demonstration.  Imam was arrested for his alleged speech at Jamia Millia Islamia on December 13, 2019, and at Aligarh Muslim University on December 16 where he allegedly threatened to “cut off” Assam and the Northeast from India. 

During the hearing, advocate Tanveer Ahmed Mir, representing Imam, read parts of his speeches and said, "Where is the call of violence? How does sedition come into play? The context is to block the roads. How is this seditious? Imam spoke about cutting off some cities. When the call ‘rail roko’ is not seditious, why is the call of bringing the country to a standstill seditious?"

Mir submitted that the contents of the speeches show that there was neither any "incitement to violence" nor had any incidents of violence taken place which could be attributed to the Imam’s speeches.

Umar Khalid’s bail hearing on July 27

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Thursday said it will hear the bail application of former JNU student leader Umar Khalid, arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in the northeast Delhi riots conspiracy case, on July 27.

Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat has sought a reply from the prosecution on Umar’s bail plea by the next day of the hearing. Khalid and several others has been booked under the anti-terror law and are accused of being the “masterminds” of the February 2020 violence.

The high court had recently granted bail to Tanha, Narwal and Kalita in the case.