‘Bail is the rule even in UAPA cases’: SC says its verdict on Khalid, Imam pleas ignored precedent

The Supreme Court on Monday criticised its own January verdict that denied bail to activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the Delhi riots conspiracy case, saying that “bail is the rule and jail is an exception” even in prosecutions under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, the Hindustan Times reported.

On January 5, the court denied bail to Khalid and Imam in the case. A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria had, however, granted bail to Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa-ur-Rehman, Shadab Ahmed and Muhammad Saleem Khan.

On Monday, another bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan was hearing a petition filed by a person Syed Iftikhar Andrabi against the Jammu and Kashmir High Court’s judgement in August that refused him bail in a narco-terror case under the anti-terror law, Live Law reported.

The Supreme Court granted Andrabi bail in the matter.

Referring to the January 5 verdict that denied bail to Khalid and Imam during the proceedings, the judges said that the Supreme Court had failed to correctly apply the binding principles laid down by a three-judge bench in the 2021 Union of India versus KA Najeeb case, the Hindustan Times reported.

This 2021 verdict recognised that prolonged incarceration and delay in trial can override the statutory restrictions on bail under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.

“Bail is not an empty statutory...

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