On Tuesday, 2nd September, the Delhi High Court dismissed the bail pleas of Shifa-ur-Rehman, president of Jamia Millia Islamia’s Alumni Association (AAJMI), and Meeran Haider, a PhD scholar from Jamia and youth leader of the RJD, both facing charges in the larger conspiracy case related to the Delhi anti-Hindu riots of 2020.
A division bench of Justice Navin Chawla and Justice Shalinder Kaur passed the order. While rejecting the bail, the Court said the allegations against the two were far too serious to be overlooked at this stage, especially their role in handling funds, organising protests, and their close links with the masterminds of the conspiracy.
Charges against Shifa-ur-Rehman
The prosecution has accused Shifa-ur-Rehman of misusing his position as president of AAJMI to raise funds for the riots. Investigators claim that around ₹8.90 lakh was pumped into protest sites through him, and fake bills were generated in the name of AAJMI to hide the actual expenditure.
The police also said that Rehman distributed money to bring women and children into protest sites, hoping that their presence would deter police action. These bills were recovered from the AAJMI office on 28th April, 2020, at Rehman’s instance, revealing that AAJMI had received around Rs 7–8 lakh in cash.
Rejecting his plea that he was the sole earning member of a large family, the Court said the evidence of his alleged involvement was too serious.
The bench observed, “We have perused the aforesaid statements, and the material placed on record. It is the case of the prosecution that the Appellants played the role assigned to them in furtherance of the alleged larger conspiracy, who were managing various protest sites across Delhi and had allegedly attended various meetings of the JCC at the AAJMI Office and other venues.”
The Court also took note of the prosecution’s submission that the money was meant to support riots and sustain protests against CAA and NRC, pointing to fake bills that were raised to adjust these funds.
Meeran Haider spent ₹2.33 lakhs on riots and protest sites: Delhi HC
Meeran Haider, also arrested in connection with the conspiracy, was accused of raising and spending large sums of money on managing protest sites. According to the prosecution, Haider allegedly gave money to AAJMI, where several meetings of the Jamia Coordination Committee (JCC) were held.
Quoting the judgment, the bench said:
“The Appellant Meeran Haider is also accused to spent ₹2.33 lakhs on riots and protest sites. He is also stated to have given money to AAJMI, where the meetings of JCC were held, while the Appellant Shifa-ur-Rehman, being the President of the AAJMI, played a pivotal role. They appear to have raised money in furtherance of the conspiracy.”
The Court noted that Haider, in addition to financing the protests, had delivered inflammatory speeches at the behest of Umar Khalid, one of the main accused in the case.
Defence arguments rejected
Both accused had argued for bail on humanitarian and legal grounds. Rehman’s counsel told the Court that he was the sole breadwinner for his elderly mother, disabled brother, two unmarried sisters, wife, and two children. His prolonged incarceration, they said, was causing severe hardship for the family.
As per the Court’s Judgement, the defence also insisted that the case against them did not meet the legal threshold for a “terrorist act” or “conspiracy” under UAPA, pointing out that no weapons were recovered, charges were not yet framed, and that others facing similar allegations, such as Asif Iqbal Tanha, Devangana Kalita, and Natasha Narwal, had already been granted bail.
But the High Court was unconvinced. It said that the roles of Rehman and Haider were not on par with the co-accused, as they were among the fundraisers in the conspiracy.
Rejecting these submissions, the Court observed, “In our view, the possibility of misuse of position by the Appellant Shifa-ur-Rehman, being the President of AAJMI, cannot be ruled out at this stage. More so, when certain bills were allegedly recovered by the prosecution from the AAJMI’s office. It is further alleged that the said organisation had received a total amount of Rs. 7–8 lakhs in cash. The Appellants are stated to have been in charge of more than eight protest sites in Delhi NCR. Appellant Meeran Haider is also alleged to have spent Rs. 2.33 lakhs on riots and protest sites.”
Court added that, prima facie, Rehman and co-accused Meeran Haider appeared to be working closely together, and the allegations of funding were a serious factor that could not be brushed aside at this stage.
On the plea of parity, the Bench said, “We are of the view that the position and role of the present Appellants in the alleged conspiracy is placed differently than the co-accused persons in the entire sequence of events, allegedly being among the fundraisers in the conspiracy.”
Background of the case
The 2020 anti-Hindu Delhi Riots, occurred in Northeast Delhi from 23rd to 26th February, leaving 53 dead and over 200 injured. The Islamists mobs attacked local Hindus on the pretext of protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). These riots were not spontaneous but a culmination of a pre-planned conspiracy A Delhi Police Head Constable and an Intelligence Bureau Constable were killed in the riots.
Delhi Police’s Special Cell had registered FIR 59 of 2020, naming several individuals. Both the accused have been charged under stringent provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) as well as sections of the Indian Penal Code relating to criminal conspiracy, promoting enmity, rioting, and murder.
Apart from Rehman and Haider, the case includes almost 17 accused people, including Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Tahir Hussain, Khalid Saifi, Ishrat Jahan, and Gulfisha Fatima.
