The Delhi High Court on Monday said that it will take up the bail petitions of those accused in the Delhi riots conspiracy case on Friday.
The Special Bench of Justice Siddharth Mridul and Justice Rajnish Bhatnagar told the Counsel appearing for the petitioners that the bench will need a few days to arrange their rosters and will sit on a daily basis starting Friday.
The High Court passed the order on a batch of petitions, including the plea of former JNU student Umar Khalid, who sought interim bail for two weeks to attend his sister’s wedding.
The High Court had said last week that they would reconsider on whether to hear the case, given the fact that they were sitting in as a Special Bench and also considering te time constraint.
The bail petitions of Sharjeel Imam, Khalid Saifi, Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Mohammad Saleem Khan, Salim Malik and Shifa Ur Rehman were also listed before the Bench, along with the appeal made by the State against bail granted to Ishrat Jahan.
The two Judges, who were not sitting on the Bench together anymore after a change in roster, had assembled as a special bench to hear Umar’s appeal.
The hearing before regular Benches, of which Justice Mridul and Justice Bhatnagar were a part, had been affected due to the Judges sitting together for the Special Bench to hear the Delhi riots cases. this had prompted the two Judges to examine whether they should sit in special combination.
However, the Special Bench cleared the air today by agreeing to hear the cases.
The High Court listed the case for further consideration on Friday, after hearing arguments by Senior Advocate Rebecca John .
The Bench also directed Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Amit Prasad to place the electronic copy of the charge sheet on record.
On October 18, the High Court had denied bail to Umar Khalid, who was arrested in connection with the Delhi Riots, 2020, under the stringent provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
Khalid had approached the High Court to challenge the dismissal of his bail plea by the trial court earlier this year.
Khalid was arrested by Delhi Police in September 2020 on charges of criminal conspiracy, rioting and unlawful assembly as well as several sections of UAPA.
Khalid was arrested for his alleged involvement in the Delhi riots, which led to death of 53 people and injuries to more than 700