New Delhi: Tensions flared at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on Monday following the Supreme Court’s decision to reject the bail pleas of activists and former JNU students Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in connection with the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case.
Videos of the protests quickly circulated on social media, including clips that allegedly showed demonstrators raising objectionable slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and industrialist Gautam Adani.
Protests Mark Anniversary of 2020 Campus Violence
The protests coincided with the sixth anniversary of the January 5, 2020 violence on the JNU campus, when masked assailants attacked students and faculty members inside the university premises.
JNU has previously described the incident as a “brutal attack,” alleging that even years later, those responsible have not been identified or arrested. University representatives and student groups have maintained that the attackers wore masks to conceal their identities and evade accountability.
Bail Denied to Khalid and Imam
Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court denied bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam while granting relief to five other accused in the same case. The bench, comprising Justices Aravind Kumar and N.V. Anjaria, said Khalid and Imam stood on a “qualitatively different footing,” citing their alleged role in the “planning, mobilisation and strategic direction” of the February 2020 riots.
The court granted bail to Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rahman, Mohammed Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmed. However, it permitted Khalid and Imam to file fresh bail applications either after the examination of protected witnesses or after one year from the date of the order.
While the exact release date of the five accused granted bail remains unclear, their lawyers expressed hope that procedural formalities would be completed by Tuesday.
Background of the Case
Umar Khalid has been in custody since 2020 in connection with the communal violence that broke out in northeast Delhi in February that year, during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).
Khalid recently returned to public attention after Sohrán Mamdani, the newly sworn-in mayor of New York City, expressed solidarity by sending a handwritten note of support.
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