Former Jawaharlal Nehru University student leader Umar Khalid has once again knocked on the doors of the Supreme Court of India, filing a Special Leave Petition to challenge the Delhi High Court’s September 2, 2025 order refusing him bail in the “larger conspiracy” case tied to the 2020 North East Delhi riots. His move follows similar appeals by co-accused Sharjeel Imam and Gulfisha Fatima, keeping the legal battle alive at the highest judicial forum.
The High Court, while rejecting Khalid’s plea earlier this month, had stressed that violence masquerading as protest cannot be afforded constitutional protection. It held that collective acts of conspiracy and incitement cannot be equated with legitimate dissent or free speech, underlining that the events of February 2020 went far beyond peaceful assembly.
Khalid, arrested in September 2020, has remained behind bars for nearly five years under provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). The prosecution alleges that he and others orchestrated the riots in a calculated attempt to destabilize public order during the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. The communal violence claimed more than 50 lives and left hundreds injured, marking one of the darkest chapters in Delhi’s recent history.
This is not Khalid’s first attempt to secure relief. Earlier bail pleas were rejected by the trial court in October 2022 and by the High Court in May 2025, both citing a voluminous charge sheet that, according to investigators, points to a well-laid conspiracy. An earlier petition before the Supreme Court in 2023 was withdrawn in February 2024, with his counsel citing altered circumstances. His fresh approach signals a renewed push to challenge the State’s narrative and secure release.
As the Supreme Court takes up his plea, the case promises to test the delicate balance between state security and individual liberty, a debate that has defined much of India’s contemporary jurisprudence on protest, dissent, and terrorism laws.
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