Activist Sharjeel Imam, an accused in the 2020 northeast Delhi riots conspiracy case, walked out of jail on Friday after nearly six years, following a Delhi court granting him interim bail for 10 days.
The court allowed Imam interim bail from March 20 to March 30 to attend his brother’s wedding and take care of his ailing mother.
Imam’s release comes months after the Supreme Court, in January, denied bail to him and co-accused Umar Khalid in the same case. The top court had then observed that the prosecution had placed sufficient material on record to establish a prima facie case indicating their alleged involvement in a larger conspiracy.
Sharjeel Imam is among several accused in the case linked to the communal violence that broke out in northeast Delhi in February 2020, which left 53 people dead and over 700 injured.
The Delhi Police, which is probing the case, has alleged that the violence was part of a “pre-planned and well-designed” conspiracy aimed at disrupting public order during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Imam and others have been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the erstwhile Indian Penal Code.
In January, while denying bail to Imam and Khalid, the Supreme Court had granted relief to five other accused — Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmed — noting that their roles differed from those attributed to the two.
According to the police, some of the accused were “masterminds” of the alleged conspiracy, citing speeches and other material as part of its evidence.
Imam’s release from jail is temporary, and he is expected to surrender before the court once the 10-day bail period ends on March 30, as the trial in the case continues.
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