New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday asked Delhi Police for how long could the accused persons be kept in jail after highlighting the passage of five years and arguments on charge still not being concluded in the terror case related to February 2020 riots.
A bench of Justices Subramonium Prasad and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar posed the question to Delhi Police during the hearing of the bail application of Tasleem Ahmed, accused in a case related to alleged larger conspiracy in the riots, lodged under stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
“Five years have gone by. Even arguments on charge have not completed. In matters like this, 700 witnesses, how much time a person can be kept inside?” the bench asked the prosecution.
The court made the query after accused’s advocate Mehmood Pracha raised the issue of delay in the proceedings in the case. Pracha said he will not be making submissions on the case’s merit but seek relief on the ground of parity in relation to the delay in trial.
He cited the examples of co-accused, Devangana Kalita, Asif Iqbal Tanha and Natasha Narwal, who were granted bail on the ground of delay in 2021.
“He (Ahmed) was arrested on June 24, 2020... I have already spent five years (in jail),” Pracha argued.
He claimed his client never caused delay in the case proceedings. Special public prosecutor Amit Prasad opposed the submission, claiming the prosecution cannot be blamed for delay in trial as there were several occasions when the matter was adjourned on accused persons’ request.
Pracha went ahead to confine his argument on the delay in trial.
The hearing would continue on July 9.