2020 anti-Hindu Delhi riots conspiracy case, accused Sharjeel Imam has approached the Supreme Court seeking bail after failing to get relief from the Delhi High Court. Imam sought bail, contending that the prosecution has not examined any witnesses so far. He also added that the one-year period after which the Supreme Court permitted him to renew his bail plea is about to expire.
In his bail plea, Sharjeel Imama reportedly pointed out that the chargesheet in his case was filed on September 25, 2020, in which 18 accused face trial and the prosecution has cited more than 900 witnesses(including 47 protected witnesses). He said that he has spent 6 years and 9 months as an undertrial, and yet the prosecution has failed to examine even a single witness.
Imam, who faces charges under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), was denied bail by the Delhi High Court on September 30, 2026. The High Court rejected the bail plea, stating that it could not alter the terms the Supreme Court had itself laid down.
In the Supreme Court ruling referred to by the High Court, the top court stated that Sharjeel and Umar Khalid, who had also approached the court, could request bail only after the examination of the protected witness was completed and after a year had passed following the order. Before the High Court, Imam had approached the trial court for bail in July, but the court had also refused to grant him bail, citing the Supreme Court conditions.
Sharjeel Imam and Umar Khalid had approached the Supreme Court after a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court denied them bail on September 2, 2025. The Supreme Court upheld the High Court’s decision against the two accused, noting that their roles were distinct from those of the other co-accused. The Court described them as the “ideological drivers” of the alleged conspiracy.
Upholding the High Court’s views, the top court said that there was a prima facie case against them under the UAPA. The court did not accept their argument that an alleged delay in their trial entitled them to bail.
Sharjeel Imam breached his interim bail conditions
Last month, a Delhi court noted that Imam had violated the conditions of his interim bail by interacting with media. However, the court declined to cancel his relief, noting that his seven-day interim bail was due to expire around the time of the hearing. The court made the observations after the Delhi Police approached the court, seeking cancellation of Imam’s interim bail in the 2020 Delhi riots larger conspiracy case.
Sharjeel Imam is one of the accused in the 2020 anti-Hindu Delhi riots larger conspiracy case. The anti-Hindu violence erupted during the anti-CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) agitation, leaving 53 people dead and hundreds injured. Imam, infamous for his speech calling for separating the “Siliguri Corridor” (Chicken’s Neck) from India, is charged primarily under UAPA provisions.
