Former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student and activist Umar Khalid on Wednesday withdrew his bail plea from the Supreme Court in the February 2020 case of communal violence in Delhi.
His lawyer, senior advocate Kapil Sibal said this was being done “due to changed circumstances” and to seek afresh before the trial court, Live Law reported.
A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Pankaj Muthal allowed his plea after Sibal told them that Khalid wanted to withdraw. Sibal, however, clarified that he will argue the separate writ petition filed by Khalid challenging the constitutionality of the provisions of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
The Delhi Police arrested Khalid on September 13, 2020, accusing him of being the “key conspirator” in the violent clashes that broke out in north-east Delhi between February 23 and February 26, 2020, between supporters of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and those opposing. The communal riots left 53 dead and over 700 injured.
Also Read: Delhi riots 2020: High Court sends Umar Khalid’s bail plea to another bench, hearing on Friday
Police claimed that the violence was part of a larger conspiracy to defame Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and further claimed that the protestors had secessionist motives and were using the “facade of civil disobedience” to destabilise the government.
Khalid has been in jail as an undertrial since his arrest by the Delhi Police in the UAPA case over the alleged larger conspiracy behind the Delhi riots of February 2020 has been ongoing.