SC bail hearing: Sharjeel disputes terror tag; Umar cites peace speech; Fathima rejects charges
New Delhi: The Supreme Court heard the bail applications of student activists accused under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case on Tuesday. During the hearing the court recorded concerns raised by the petitioners over prolonged incarceration and the nature of charges levelled against them.
Sharjeel Imam was represented by senior advocate Siddhartha Dave, who told the bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria that he had been branded an “intellectual terrorist” even before the completion of trial. He said he had already been in custody since 28 January 2020, before the riots took place. Dave also mentioned that his speeches had been selectively presented to suggest conspiracy. Imam said he had never been convicted of any offence and maintained that the remarks attributed to him were not evidence of terrorism or conspiracy.
Responding to the prosecution’s claim that his speeches provided the “platform” for the riots, the bench asked whether his submissions implied that the material cited by the police would not constitute a terrorist act. Imam insisted that the allegations were distressing and that the charges rested solely on excerpts of his public speeches, not on evidence linking him to the violence.
Appearing for Umar Khalid, senior advocate Kapil Sibal argued that his client was being kept in custody “as punishment for protests,” and said the prosecution had failed to show how Khalid’s participation in public demonstrations amounted to an attempt to overthrow the government. Sibal told the court that Khalid was not in Delhi when the riots occurred. He played his 17 February 2020 Amravati speech, in which Khalid had called for peace. He questioned how such a speech could be viewed as unlawful or inflammatory under the UAPA.
Sibal also argued that student protests have been a part of democratic expression and that incarceration could not be justified on the basis of dissent.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Gulfisha Fatima, submitted that she remained the only woman among the accused still in custody and that charges against her were yet to be framed nearly six years after her arrest. He said the prosecution had listed 939 witnesses, resulting in an unusually delayed trial, and contended that she deserved parity with others who had been granted bail earlier. He said references to a “regime change operation” did not appear in the chargesheet and questioned the nature of the allegations related to supposed secret meetings, many details of which, he said, were publicly available online.
The Delhi Police opposed the bail pleas, maintaining that the riots were an orchestrated and deliberate attempt to destabilise national order, and that the accused had played a central role in what the prosecution described as a coordinated conspiracy during the anti-CAA and anti-NRC protests. The activists, including Khalid, Imam and Fatima, continue to face charges under the UAPA and provisions of the erstwhile IPC relating to conspiracy and unlawful assembly.
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ED attaches fresh assets in PMLA case against Reliance Group; total attachment over Rs 10K cr
New Delhi (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate has attached fresh assets worth Rs 1,120 crore as part of its money laundering probe against the companies of Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani, officials said.
Eighteen properties, including the Reliance Centre in Mumbai's Ballard Estate, fixed deposits, bank balance and shareholding in unqouted investments of Reliance Anil Ambani Group have been provisionally attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said.
Another set of seven properties of Reliance Infrastructure Ltd, two properties of Reliance Power Ltd, nine properties of Reliance Value Service Private Ltd, fixed deposits in the name of Reliance Value Service Private Ltd, Reliance Venture Asset Management Private Lt, Phi Management Solutions Private Ltd, Adhar Property Consultancy Pvt Ltd, Gamesa Investment Management Private Ltd and investments made in unquoted investment by Reliance Venture Asset Management Private Ltd and Phi Management Solutions Private Ltd have also been attached, they said.
The ED had earlier attached properties worth over Rs 8,997 crore in the bank fraud cases related to Reliance Communications Ltd (RCOM), Reliance Commercial Finance Ltd, and Reliance Home Finance Ltd.
The total attachment in the case against the Reliance Group is now Rs 10,117 crore.
