ANI
The court requested the Delhi High Court to hear the bail plea on the scheduled date unless there are exceptional circumstances. A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma considered the case.
The Supreme Court refused to consider the writ petition filed by Gulfisha Fatima seeking bail in a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967 over the alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots. However, the court requested the Delhi High Court to hear the bail plea on a fixed date unless there are exceptional circumstances. A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma considered the case.
As soon as the petition was admitted, Justice Trivedi said that a similar writ petition filed by co-accused Sharjeel Imam had been disposed of, in which the High Court was requested to decide the bail plea quickly. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the petitioner, said that there is a difference in this case and the decision taken by this bench. He said that this woman (petitioner) has been inside for four years and 7 months. On 24 dates the bench was adjourned because the presiding officer was on leave and on the other 26 dates no arguments were heard and the matter was simply adjourned. Arguments were heard on two different dates, the order was reserved.
Sibal said that the next date of hearing in Delhi High Court is November 25. ‘I need bail here.’ Sibal pressed for bail citing delay in the trial and the petitioner being in jail for a long time. When the bench suggested that the High Court may be requested to hear the case, Sibal said, “It will go on again…the matter gets adjourned when it reaches the board. Someone gets 4 years and 7 What does it mean to keep it for a year?” Months in jail? She is a woman, age 31 years. There is no question of the trial being initiated.
