The Delhi High Court today observed that the speech delivered by Umar Khalid in Maharashtra’s Amravati was “obnoxious and inciteful” as it issued notice in an appeal filed by the former JNU student in an appeal filed by him against an order by a trial court denying him bail in an Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) case registered against him in connection with the February 2020 Northeast Delhi riots, Bar&Bench reported.
A bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Rajnish Bhatnagar, which was hearing the plea, was being taken through the contents of the speech that Khalid had delivered at Amravati, which also formed the basis of the FIR against him. Senior advocate Trideep Pais, representing Khalid, argued that his client was not present in Delhi when the crime he is accused of took place.
While the charges are yet to be framed against Khalid, the case against him is based on a video of his speech in Amravati. It was then that Kahlid’s lawyer took the court through the contents of the speech.
However, the court interrupted him midway and remarked: “These expressions being used, don’t you think they incite people? You don’t think “jab aapke poorvaj angrezon ki dalali kar rahe the” (when your ancestors were doing the bidding for the British) is offensive? It gives the impression that only one community was fighting against the British. Did Gandhiji ever employ such language? Did Bhagat Singh ever employ this? Is this what Gandhiji told us?” Bar&Bench quoted the bench as saying.
The court further observed that it was not surprising that the FIR is based on the abovementioned part of the speech. “Prima facie this is not acceptable. This is not acceptable in four corners of democracy and free speech,” the bench added and proceeded to issue notice in Khalid’s plea against the Karkardooma court order rejecting bail on March 24 this year. The court also posted the matter for hearing on April 27.
Umar Khalid was arrested by the Delhi Police on September 13, 2020, and chargesheeted him on November 22 the same year under various sections of the UAPA and the IPC. Khalid had moved a bail plea in July 2021 which was denied by the special court in March this year.