Supreme Court denies bail to Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam in Delhi riots ‘larger conspiracy’ case
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday refused to grant bail to activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the Delhi riots larger conspiracy case, observing that a prima facie case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) is made out against them.
A bench of the apex court said it was satisfied that the prosecution material establishes a prima facie case and that statutory restrictions under UAPA apply. “Granting bail at this stage of the proceedings would not be appropriate,” the court noted, adding that it had deliberately refrained from adopting a collective or integrated approach while examining the case.
Khalid, Imam and several others have been charged under UAPA and provisions of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly being “masterminds” of the February 2020 Delhi riots, which claimed 53 lives and left over 700 people injured. The violence erupted during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).
Sharjeel Imam was arrested on August 25, 2020. While challenging the trial court’s refusal to grant bail, the accused cited prolonged incarceration and sought parity with certain co-accused who had been granted bail earlier. Their bail pleas have been pending before the Delhi High Court since 2022 and were heard intermittently by different benches.
The Supreme Court’s decision comes after the Delhi High Court had earlier denied bail to Khalid and Imam in the same case.
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Odisha govt halts salaries of 5 teachers after school fire injures 4 students
Bhubaneswar (PTI): The Odisha government on Tuesday halted the salaries of five teachers and issued show-cause notices to other staff of a state-run high school in Rayagada district, a day after four students sustained severe burn injuries in a fire incident on the premises of the institute.
School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond told PTI that he has directed the department secretary to submit a detailed report on the incident and ordered a departmental inquiry to ascertain negligence, if any.
The students suffered burn injuries while playing around a fire during school hours.
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“The department has stopped the salaries of five teachers and issued show-cause notices to other staff members in connection with the incident,” he said.
The minister said that further action would be taken against teachers or staff if negligence in duty was established.
School and Mass Education Secretary N Thirumala Naik said three of the injured students were undergoing treatment at a hospital in Rayagada, while one critically injured student has been shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack.
The school headmaster had lodged a complaint at Muniguda police station on Monday. Police have recorded statements of the injured students, officials said.
According to preliminary findings, the incident occurred when a classmate of the injured students allegedly threw colour thinner, an inflammable substance, onto a fire that had been lit by the students on the school building’s balcony.
Muniguda police station in-charge inspector Saudamini Behera said the students were playing on the school roof around 2 pm on Monday when they found a bottle of thinner stored there.
They allegedly poured it on the floor and set it on fire using a matchstick. One of the boys later added more thinner, causing the flames to flare up and injure four students, she said.
