Delhi Police seeks to revoke Sharjeel Imam’s bail over alleged media interaction
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New Delhi: The Delhi Police has sought the cancellation of activist Sharjeel Imam’s interim bail, accusing him of violating a court-imposed restriction against interacting with media personnel during his temporary release.
The police relied on a video circulating on social media that allegedly showed Imam speaking to reporters while on bail. The application contends that he knowingly disregarded the condition imposed by the court and misused the liberty granted to him, LiveLaw reported.
Imam received seven days of interim bail, from October 4 to October 10, to attend his cousin’s wedding. Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai of the Karkardooma courts granted the relief on September 22. Imam is due to return to Tihar jail on Saturday, while the court is scheduled to take up the police plea later in the day.
The activist has been in custody since his arrest in connection with the alleged larger conspiracy behind the communal violence that erupted in northeast Delhi in February 2020. The investigation followed protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in 2019-20. Imam faces charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Other activists named as accused in the case include Umar Khalid, Meeran Haider, Gulfisha Fatima, Shifa-Ur-Rehman, Shadab Ahmed, Tasleem Ahmed, Saleem Malik, Mohd. Saleem Khan, Athar Khan, Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal.
Imam and Khalid have spent nearly six years in prison without trial in the case, raising concerns about prolonged pre-trial detention.