I am not asking whether Umar Khalid is guilty or innocent. That is for a court to decide after a proper trial.
But there is another question that deserves an answer.
Why has Umar Khalid spent nearly six years in prison without a trial?
Khalid was arrested in September 2020 in the larger conspiracy case relating to the Delhi riots. He has been charged under the stringent UAPA, and the prosecution alleges that he played a central role in the conspiracy. He denies the allegations.
In January this year, the Supreme Court refused him bail, holding that the material against him crossed the threshold required under the UAPA.
But then something important happened.
In May, another Supreme Court bench expressed serious reservations about that reasoning and referred questions concerning UAPA bail and prolonged incarceration to a larger bench. The court reiterated the constitutional importance of liberty and the principle that bail is ordinarily the rule, not the exception.
And now, in July, the Delhi High Court has issued notice on Khalid’s third bail plea.
This is not about liking Umar Khalid or agreeing with his politics.
It is about a basic principle of criminal justice.
An accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Prison before conviction is meant to be an exception, not a substitute for a trial.
If the evidence is strong enough to justify continued custody, let the trial establish that. If the trial is going to take years, the court must seriously examine whether prolonged incarceration without conviction remains constitutionally justified.
At the same time, UAPA is a special law, and courts cannot simply ignore the statutory restrictions on bail merely because a trial is delayed. The allegations are serious and must be tested judicially.
So I am not saying Umar Khalid should be declared innocent.
I am asking something much simpler:
After nearly six years in prison without a trial, is keeping an accused behind bars still serving the cause of justice, or has the delay itself become a punishment?
That is a question worth asking, regardless of which side of the political divide one stands on.
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