Supreme Court Seeks Delhi Police Reply on Athar Khan’s Bail Plea
Khan challenges Delhi HC order denying bail in UAPA ‘larger conspiracy’ case
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has sought a response from the Delhi Police on a plea filed by Athar Khan seeking bail in a UAPA case concerning the alleged “larger conspiracy” behind the February 2020 riots in the national capital.
A two-judge bench of Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice Vipul M. Pancholi issued notice to the police on Khan’s appeal challenging the Delhi High Court’s July 7 judgment refusing him bail.
“Issue notice. List after eight weeks,” the apex court said.
The High Court had dismissed Khan’s appeal against the trial court’s January 29 order denying him bail, stating that he was “one of the main conspirators who conspired to cause deaths during the riots” and not a “mere local-level operator”.
Khan’s counsel had sought bail on the grounds that he was a “local-level facilitator” who had been in custody for six years and that similarly placed co-accused had been granted bail by the Supreme Court.
The High Court, after considering the Supreme Court’s findings on the bail pleas of the co-accused, held that Khan’s role was “clearly distinguishable” from those granted relief by the apex court.
It said material, including a protected witness statement, showed that while others in a WhatsApp group chat suggested non-violent protests, Khan “persisted with his objective of engaging in violent protests, to the extent of even causing death”.
The High Court said that since Khan’s prima facie role in causing deaths and destruction of private and public property was established, his case did not pass the strict test for bail under Section 43D(5) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967.
Khan, a former call centre employee, is accused of being one of the main conspirators and organisers of the protest at Chand Bagh in northeast Delhi and of allegedly delivering inflammatory speeches there to instigate violence.
According to the Delhi Police Special Cell, Khan allegedly participated in secret meetings in which he said the “time has come to burn Delhi” and coordinated the destruction of CCTV cameras.
Khan, who was arrested in July 2020, was booked under the UAPA for allegedly being one of the “masterminds” of the February 2020 riots, which left 53 people dead and more than 700 injured.
The violence erupted during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019, and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
Activists Sharjeel Imam, Khalid Saifi and Umar Khalid, among others, were also booked for their alleged involvement in the larger conspiracy case, which is being investigated by the Delhi Police Special Cell.