The Delhi High Court granted bail to Sharjeel Imam on Wednesday in connection with the 2020 Delhi riots case, which involved allegations of sedition, as reported by PTI on May 29. A Division Bench comprising Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Manoj Jain granted Imam statutory bail, according to Bar and Bench.
Imam had appealed against a trial court’s February 17 decision that denied him bail. He argued before the trial court that he had already been in custody for four years. The maximum sentence for the offense under Section 13 of the UAPA is seven years upon conviction.
Section 436-A of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) allows for the release of a person from custody if they have served more than half of the maximum sentence prescribed for the offense.
Despite this bail, Imam will remain in jail as his bail petition in the police’s larger conspiracy case related to the Delhi riots is still pending before the High Court, as noted by Bar and Bench.
The prosecution alleges that Imam delivered speeches at Jamia Millia Islamia on December 13, 2019, and at Aligarh Muslim University on December 16, 2019, where he purportedly threatened to sever Assam and the North East from India, according to PTI.
The Delhi Police’s Special Branch initially booked Imam for sedition and later added charges under Section 13 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). He has been in custody since January 28, 2020.
