Supreme Court defers Athar Khan's Delhi riots bail plea by four weeks

The Supreme Court on Friday adjourned for four weeks the hearing on Athar Khan's bail plea in a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act concerning the alleged larger conspiracy behind the February 2020 riots in northeast Delhi, news agency Press Trust of India reported.

Khan has challenged a Delhi High Court judgment dated July 7 that refused him bail. He was arrested in July 2020 and is accused of being one of the main conspirators behind the violence, which left 53 people dead and more than 700 injured.

A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and Vipul M Pancholi deferred the hearing after Additional Solicitor General S V Raju informed the court that a reply had been filed in the matter, according to PTI. The court allowed Khan to file a response to the Delhi Police's reply.

The Supreme Court had earlier issued notice to the Delhi Police on Khan's appeal against the High Court judgment. The High Court had dismissed his challenge to a trial court's January 29 order denying him bail.

The High Court had said Khan was "one of the main conspirators who conspired to cause deaths during the riots" and not a "mere local-level operator".

Khan's lawyer had sought bail on the grounds that he was a "local-level facilitator", had been in custody for six years and that similarly placed co-accused had been granted bail by the Supreme Court.

The High Court considered the Supreme Court's findings on the bail pleas of the co-accused and held that Khan's role was "clearly distinguishable" from those granted relief.

It said the material in the case, including the statement of a protected witness, showed that while others in a WhatsApp group suggested non-violent protests, Khan "persisted with his objective of engaging in violent protests, to the extent of even causing death".

The High Court said the available material indicated Khan's role in causing deaths and the destruction of private and public property. It held that his case did not meet the strict conditions for bail under Section 43D(5) of the UAPA.

Khan, a former call centre employee, is accused of being one of the main conspirators and organisers of a protest at Chand Bagh in northeast Delhi. He is also accused of delivering inflammatory speeches to instigate violence.

According to the Delhi Police Special Cell, Khan allegedly attended secret meetings where he said the "time has come to burn Delhi" and coordinated the destruction of CCTV cameras.

He was booked under the UAPA as one of the alleged "masterminds" of the riots. The violence broke out during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, and the National Register of Citizens.

Activists Sharjeel Imam, Khalid Saifi and Umar Khalid, among others, were also booked over their alleged involvement in the larger conspiracy case, which is being investigated by the Delhi Police's Special Cell.

The Supreme Court will hear Khan's bail plea after four weeks, following the filing of the Delhi Police's reply and Khan's response to it.