Overview
- The High Court issued notice to the Delhi Police on Friday, July 31, and directed a reply within two weeks while listing Khalid’s appeal to be heard with co‑accused Sharjeel Imam on August 27.
- Khalid, held since September 2020, says there has been no meaningful trial progress, that charges are yet to be framed, and has asked for interim bail pending the Supreme Court’s larger‑bench ruling.
- A Karkardooma trial court on July 4 refused Khalid’s fresh bail plea, saying it was bound by the Supreme Court’s January 5 order that had denied bail to Khalid and Imam while granting relief to several other co‑accused.
- The legal fight turns on Section 43D(5) of the UAPA, which bars bail when a court finds a prima facie case, and on the 2021 KA Najeeb judgment that recognised delay in trial as a possible ground for bail.
- How the High Court rules on interim relief could affect other UAPA cases because the Supreme Court has referred conflicting bench views on applying KA Najeeb to a larger bench and courts may either speed trials or reconsider prolonged detention as a bail factor.