No bail for Umar Khalid: ‘Welcome to Viksit Bharat, where raising your voice lands you in jail,’ says Congress – Top reactions

The apex court observed that Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam stand on a "qualitatively different footing" in terms of both the prosecution case and the evidence on record.

• Supreme Court denied bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in Delhi riots case
• Bail granted to Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, and others.
• Court said Khalid and Imam played central roles in the alleged conspiracy

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The Supreme Court on Monday denied bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in a case linked to an alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 north-east Delhi riots. However, the court granted bail to Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad.

The apex court observed that Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam stand on a "qualitatively different footing" in terms of both the prosecution case and the evidence on record. It noted that their roles were "central" to the alleged offences. While acknowledging that their period of incarceration has been long, the court said it does not violate the constitutional mandate or override the statutory embargo under the applicable laws.

The judgment was delivered by a bench comprising Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria on the bail pleas filed by Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad.

The verdict has drawn sharp reactions across the political spectrum. Karnataka minister and senior Congress leader Priyank Kharge took a swipe at the ruling dispensation, saying, "Welcome to #ViksitBharat where you are jailed for raising your voice and get bail for being a rapist." In a social media post, he pointed out that several people accused of sexual assault have been granted bail, naming Gurmeet Ram Rahim, Asaram Bapu and Kuldeep Singh Sengar.

Reacting to the court's decision, Umar Khalid's father, S Q R Ilyas, said he had nothing to say about the Supreme Court's refusal to grant bail to his son.

Hari Solanki, father of Rahul Solanki, who died during the Delhi riots, said, "I want to thank the Supreme Court for not granting bail to two people, but I also want to say that granting bail to five people is like giving a death sentence to those who lost family members during the riots. We want them to be given the death sentence so that no such riots ever take place again."

BJP MP Vivek Thakur said the Supreme Court's observations were significant. "The people who used to say 'Bharat tere tukde honge' have got a slap on their face from the Supreme Court. The court mentioned that both accused, Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, were central figures and played a crucial role," he said.

BJP spokesperson Shahzad Poonawalla also welcomed the verdict, saying, "Today we would say 'Satyamev Jayate'. The Supreme Court has denied bail to the poster boys of the 'Tukde Tukde Gang', Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, whose roles in the Delhi riots and charges under the UAPA have been found to be prima facie true. It shows that the Delhi riots were not organic but organised, not spontaneous but sponsored. Unfortunately, the Congress Party kept defending Sharjeel and Umar. Today, they must apologise."