Delhi riots case: Sharjeel Imam to surrender at Tihar as interim bail expires

Student activist Sharjeel Imam will surrender before Tihar Jail authorities on Monday after the expiry of his 10-day interim bail granted for family reasons. The bail, approved by the Karkardooma Court, came with strict conditions including restrictions on media interaction and social media use.

New Delhi: Student activist Sharjeel Imam is set to surrender before Tihar Jail authorities on Monday upon the expiry of the 10-day interim bail granted to him by a Delhi court in connection with the alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 North-East Delhi riots.

Imam had been granted interim bail by the Karkardooma Court from March 20 to March 30 to attend his younger brother’s wedding and to take care of his ailing mother, subject to stringent conditions.

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Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai had allowed temporary relief, directing Imam to furnish a personal bond of Rs 50,000 along with two sureties of the like amount. The court had also imposed strict restrictions, including a prohibition on interacting with the media or using social media during the interim bail period.

The court had further directed that Imam would only meet his family members, relatives and friends and not contact any witness or any person connected with the case.

He was also asked to keep his mobile phone active at all times and share the number with the investigating officer. During the interim bail period, Imam was permitted to remain either at his residence or at the venues of the wedding ceremonies, as specified in his application.

Imam, who has been in custody for over five years, had sought interim bail citing his role as the sole sibling responsible for managing the wedding arrangements and supporting his family, particularly his ailing mother.

The prosecution had opposed the plea, contending that his presence was not indispensable for the ceremonies and that adequate arrangements had already been made by the family. It also argued that there was no emergent medical condition necessitating his release.

Imam is among several student activists who have been booked under the UAPA and various provisions of the Indian Penal Code in connection with the alleged conspiracy behind the February 2020 North-East Delhi riots.

According to the Delhi Police, the violence was not a spontaneous outbreak but the culmination of a premeditated conspiracy involving mobilisation, road blockades and coordinated protests aimed at disrupting normal life and drawing international attention during the visit of then US President Donald Trump.

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court dismissed the bail pleas of Imam and co-accused Umar Khalid in the case, holding that the prosecution material, taken cumulatively and at face value, disclosed reasonable grounds for believing that the accusations against them were prima facie true, thereby attracting the statutory embargo on bail under Section 43D(5) of the UAPA.