The Delhi High Court on September 4, dismissed a plea by Sharjeel Imam seeking an early hearing of his bail application, which is currently scheduled for October 7, 2024. Imam, who has been in custody since January 28, 2020, is accused in the larger conspiracy case related to the 2020 Delhi riots. His bail plea has been pending for over 28 months.
A division bench led by Justice Suresh Kumar Kait rejected the request for an expedited hearing, stating that the matter was already scheduled for a fixed date and time on October 7, 2024, and there was no justification for preponing the hearing.
Imam, represented by advocates Talib Mustafa and Ahmad Ibrahim, had approached the court to challenge an earlier order by the Karkardooma Court, dated April 11, 2022, which denied his bail application. The appeal against this order has been pending since April 29, 2022. The plea emphasised that, under the provisions of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) Act, appeals under Section 21 should be resolved within three months of their admission.
The petitioners highlighted that the appeal had been listed for hearing 62 times before seven different division benches due to frequent changes in the composition of benches, caused by roster changes, recusals, and transfers of judges. These changes, they argued, have prevented a conclusive hearing and led to repeated cycles of fresh hearings.
The plea noted that the last substantive hearing took place before a division bench comprising Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Manoj Jain, during which Imam concluded his arguments on March 19, 2024. The arguments from the respondent’s side began on the same day but could not be completed due to a lack of time, leading to further adjournments.
However, before the respondent’s arguments could be finalised, the case was reassigned to another division bench due to a roster change, further delaying the process.
The petition underscored that the Supreme Court has consistently held that bail applications should be decided expeditiously, typically within two to four weeks. Multiple guidelines have been issued to high courts and district courts to adhere to these timelines. It further noted that the trial in Imam’s case has been pending before the Special Court since 2020, with the prosecution’s investigation still ongoing and no charges framed to date.
The prosecution reportedly intends to examine over 1,000 witnesses, with the supporting documents running into lakhs of pages. The plea also mentioned that Imam, who was pursuing a Ph.D. in Modern History from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) at the time of his arrest, has been unable to complete his doctorate due to his continued incarceration for nearly four and a half years.
The chargesheet filed in the case, identified as Delhi Riots Chargesheet No. 59, is a detailed 17,000-page document that alleges a conspiracy to incite riots following the tabling of the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) in Parliament on December 5, 2019. The document claims that on December 5, Imam created WhatsApp groups for Muslim students, and the next day, began distributing pamphlets in mosques, including in the Jama Masjid area, aimed at inciting communal hatred.
The chargesheet further alleges that these pamphlets, authored by Imam, contained inflammatory content that sought to provoke the Muslim community by invoking the Supreme Court’s decision in the Ram Janmabhoomi case. Some pamphlets reportedly declared, “Law of Allah above all else” and “The command of Allah is above every law,” and spread misinformation about the Citizenship Amendment Bill.
In the days that followed, misinformation regarding the CAB was allegedly spread, and protest marches were organised by groups like United Against Hate. Imam is accused of calling for “doing something big” in the following weeks. The chargesheet mentions that violence erupted on December 15, 2019, and describes a series of meetings held by “intellectuals” to allegedly disseminate false information about the CAB, including a meeting on December 8, 2019, the details of which are included in the chargesheet.
The dismissal of Imam’s plea for an early hearing means that the case will proceed as scheduled on October 7, 2024, while the accused continues to await his day in court.
