The Delhi high court observed that the speech by jailed activist and research scholar of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Umar Khalid’s speech from February 2020 in Amravati, Maharashtra, while in poor taste cannot be dubbed a “terrorist act”.
A report by the NDTV said that the observation came while hearing a bail plea from Khalid who challenged a trial court’s decision to dismiss his plea on March 24, 2022.
A two-judge sitting bench observed, “The speech is in bad taste, but does not make it a terrorist act. We understand that extremely well. If the case of the prosecution is premised on how offensive the speech was, that by itself would not constitute an offence. We will give them (prosecution) the opportunity.”
The bench is headed by Justices Siddharth Mridul and Rajnish Bhatnagar.
Umar Khalid’s counsel argued that the speech made by Umar was against an “unjust law” (Citizenship Amendment Act) and in no way against the sovereignty of the Indian Constitution. The counsel said that the allegations against Umar by the Delhi Police cannot qualified as a “terror attack” and the people who participated in the speech were not contemplating or thinking of any kind of violence.
Background of Umar Khalid’s arrest
Student activist Umar Khalid was arrested by the Delhi Police under the draconian law Unlawful Activities Prevention Law (UAPA) on September 13, 2020, in relation to the speech he had made in February 2020. The Delhi Police alleged that Umar’s speech was a catalyst in the Delhi riots of February 2020 that led to 53 people dead and over 700 injured.
The violence had erupted during the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act and the National Register of Citizens.
Follow on Twitter | Posted by Veena Nair | 
