Delhi High Court Grants Statutory Bail to Sharjeel Imam in Sedition Case - 2024-05-29

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday granted statutory bail to Sharjeel Imam in a UAPA and sedition case relating to the alleged inflammatory speeches made by him in Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia area in the national capital against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

A division bench comprising Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Manoj Jain allowed Imam 's bail plea. He had challenged the trial court order denying him statutory bail in the case.

Imam had sought bail on the ground of having undergone one half of the maximum seven years punishment. Advocates Talib Mustafa and Ahmad Ibrahim appeared for Imam , while SPP Rajat Nair represented the Delhi Police.

Mustafa, representing Imam , submitted that Imam has already undergone four years and seven months of incarceration out of the seven years of maximum imprisonment. However, Nair opposed the plea on the ground that Imam had not undergone half sentence and that his case was squarely covered by the Explanation to Section 436A of CrPC, making him ineligible for statutory bail.

Nair also said that the delayed period of pre-trial detention was solely attributable to Imam on whose instance the trial was stayed in 2022.

The court allowed the plea after taking note of various list of dates, including the date of framing of charges and examination of witnesses.

On February 17, the trial court had dismissed Imam 's bail plea, observing that his speeches and activities "mobilised the public" which disrupted the national capital and might be the main reason for the outbreak of the 2020 riots.

Imam was booked under FIR 22 of 2020 registered by Delhi Police's Special Branch. While the case was initially registered for the offence of sedition, Section 13 of UAPA was invoked later. He has been custody in the case since January 28, 2020.

However, Imam will remain in jail in the Delhi riots larger conspiracy case involving UAPA charges, as his bail plea in that matter is still pending before the Delhi High Court.