Umar Khalid’s counsel told a Delhi court that he was unfairly named in the 2020 riots conspiracy just for being in WhatsApp groups, while group admins and others in the same position were spared. The case will be heard again on October 14.
New Delhi: Former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid’s counsel argued in a Delhi court on Thursday that his client was unfairly made an accused in the alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots, while others in the same situation were not charged.
The matter was heard before Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai during arguments opposing the framing of charges against Khalid.
Senior advocate Trideep Pais, representing Khalid, told the court that his client was being accused mainly because he was a member of at least four WhatsApp groups, but none of the group administrators had been named as accused in the case.
He said,
“The (Delhi) High Court has already held that you cannot become an accused by virtue of becoming a WhatsApp group member. None of the admins is an accused. What is the qualitative difference between me and other accused who have messaged on the group?”
Pais referred to the statement of a protected witness who had claimed that the Delhi Protest Support Group (DPSG) WhatsApp group was the starting point of the alleged conspiracy.
However, he pointed out that the two individuals who created that group were not made accused in the case.
He further submitted that several statements by protected witnesses did not show any offence either under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) or the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Citing one such statement, Pais noted that Khalid was alleged to have attended a meeting on December 8, 2019, in Jangpura, where a conspiracy about the Delhi riots was discussed. On this, he said,
“If this is the conspiracy on which you are pegging it on me, why are not the others (who attended the meeting) made an accused. I am an accused, while they are not. How it is criminal is not understood. Nobody attributes any decision to me.”
Another statement claimed that Khalid spoke about carrying out protests across the country along with Muslim students. To this, the senior advocate questioned how such remarks could be treated as terrorism.
He said,
“How do you delineate my role to be higher or lower than the others?”
The court adjourned the hearing and posted the matter for further arguments on October 14.
Last month, Khalid’s lawyer had strongly criticised the case, saying his client had already spent five years in jail without proper legal grounds. He remarked that it was a “joke of an FIR” which did not have the “sanctity of law.”
Umar Khalid was arrested on September 13, 2020, in connection with the alleged conspiracy case. In total, 20 people have been named as accused, including activists Sharjeel Imam, Khalid Saifi, and former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain.
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