The bail is short and specific: six days, to attend a family wedding. It is not a decision on whether Sharjeel Imam should be released pending trial, that question is before the High Court separately, but a temporary, humanitarian release of the kind courts grant to under-trial prisoners for such occasions. The larger-conspiracy allegations against him in the 2020 Delhi riots case remain untested, and he, like his co-accused, is entitled to the presumption of innocence.
New Delhi: A Delhi court has granted interim bail to Sharjeel Imam in the 2020 North-East Delhi riots larger-conspiracy case, to enable him to attend his cousin’s wedding.
Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai of the Karkardooma Courts granted the interim bail for the period from October 4 to October 10, 2026.
The order, and what is pending
The interim bail is a temporary release granted for the limited purpose of attending the wedding, on the expiry of which the accused must ordinarily surrender; it does not affect the pending question of regular bail, or the merits of the case. Imam’s regular bail plea, along with that of co-accused Umar Khalid, is listed to be heard by the Delhi High Court on September 30.
This is not the first such release. Earlier this year, Imam was granted interim bail for ten days, from March 20 to March 30, to attend his brother’s wedding.
The case
The larger-conspiracy case concerns the communal riots that took place in North-East Delhi in the last week of February 2020. The accused, several of whom were student activists prominent in organising the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act in 2019-2020, are charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Indian Penal Code, the prosecution alleging that they were behind a “larger conspiracy” said to underlie the riots.
These are the allegations of the prosecution, which are yet to be tested at trial; no charge has been established, and the accused are entitled to the presumption of innocence. Several of the co-accused in the case have, over the years, been granted bail, while others remain in custody with their bail pleas at various stages.
Why it matters
Interim bail of this kind is a recognised, humane feature of the criminal process: an under-trial prisoner, whose guilt has not been established, may be released for a short, defined period to attend to a pressing personal occasion such as a wedding, a bereavement or a medical need, subject to conditions and to surrender on the appointed date. The grant of such bail says nothing about the strength of the case or the prospects of regular bail; it is a limited concession keyed to the particular occasion.
The larger question, whether Imam is entitled to be released on bail through the pendency of the trial, is distinct and remains alive before the Delhi High Court, which will take up his regular bail plea, and Umar Khalid’s, on September 30. That question engages the stricter bail standard under the UAPA and the prolonged incarceration of the accused, several of whom have been in custody since 2020, matters on which the High Court will rule separately. The present order leaves all of that untouched.
Nothing in the interim order bears on the merits of the prosecution’s case or on the guilt or innocence of any accused. The trial is yet to conclude, the “larger conspiracy” alleged is unproven, and the accused stand protected by the presumption of innocence. What the court has done is narrow, allowed a man in custody to attend a family wedding for six days, and it should be read as no more than that.
Matter: Interim bail in the 2020 North-East Delhi riots larger-conspiracy case
Court: Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai, Karkardooma Courts, New Delhi
Order: Interim bail granted to Sharjeel Imam from October 4 to October 10, 2026, to attend his cousin’s wedding
Status: Regular bail pleas of Sharjeel Imam and Umar Khalid listed before the Delhi High Court on September 30. Allegations untested; presumption of innocence applies.