‘Better be in jail till acquitted or convicted’: Solicitor General’s departure from ‘bail is the rule’

In a striking departure from the legal principle that “bail is the rule, jail the exception”, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta on Tuesday told the Delhi High Court that those accused in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case should “better be in jail” until acquitted or convicted.

Appearing for the Delhi Police, Mehta opposed bail pleas of Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and others accused in the February 2020 Delhi riots larger conspiracy case in the Delhi High Court, according to LiveLaw. “If you are doing something against the nation, then you better be in jail till you are acquitted or convicted,” Mehta told the court.

The court reserved its judgment in the bail pleas of all accused except Shadab Ahmed and listed his plea for hearing on Thursday. It allowed all the parties to file their written submissions within three days. 

The Delhi High Court had started hearing fresh arguments in the case from July 2. Among the accused in the larger conspiracy case are former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain, ‘United Against Hate’ founder Khalid Saifi, former Congress councillor Ishrat Jahan, and student activists Asif Iqbal Tanha and Devangana Kalita.

“This is not a riots case where someone can say it is long incarceration and I should get bail…Their intention was to globally defame the nation by choosing a particular day for more rioting and more arson,” SGI Mehta told the court, referring to US President Donald Trump’s visit on February 24, 2020. 

According to LiveLaw, Mehta stated that the riots were pre-planned, well-organised, and with the view to achieving a sinister goal, which by itself is an example that would disqualify them from seeking any relief of bail.

Mehta said the accused allegedly colluded via a WhatsApp group and used fake numbers. Additionally, Mehta called the Delhi Police’s probe into the case one of the “finest investigations”. 

The bail plea by Umar Khalid was earlier adjourned several times in the Supreme Court. Read this to understand the reasons and the timeline of these adjournments. 

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