Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday granted bail to Salim Malik in a case linked to the alleged larger conspiracy behind the February 2020 communal violence in northeast Delhi.
The relief was granted by a division bench comprising Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Madhu Jain while hearing Malik’s appeal against a trial court order that had earlier denied him bail in January.
Malik had been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, commonly known as the UAPA, in connection with the riots that broke out in parts of northeast Delhi during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).
The violence, which erupted in February 2020, claimed 53 lives and left more than 700 people injured, making it one of the deadliest episodes of unrest in the capital in recent years.
During the hearing, Malik’s counsel argued that he was entitled to parity with co-accused individuals who had already been granted bail by the Supreme Court of India earlier this year. The defence referred to the apex court’s decision granting bail to accused persons including Mohammad Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad.
Malik was arrested in June 2020 and is among several individuals accused of participating in meetings and protests linked to the anti-CAA and anti-NRC demonstrations that preceded the riots.
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court granted bail to five accused in the conspiracy case, including Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad.
However, the apex court declined bail to activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, observing that all accused in the case could not be treated identically and that individual roles and allegations differed.
The case remains one of the most closely watched legal proceedings arising from the 2020 Delhi riots, with multiple accused continuing to face trial under anti-terror and criminal conspiracy charges.
