The Delhi High Court has refused to grant bail to an accused in a Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) case linked to the alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 communal riots here, saying a violent public demonstration goes beyond the constitutional right to protest and becomes an offence punishable under law.
A Bench headed by Justice Suresh Kumar Kait, in its order uploaded on April 23, said there was enough material to indicate that the accused Salim Malik, who allegedly instigated the locals in the name of religion to destroy harmony, was a co-conspirator in a "deep-rooted conspiracy".
The Court observed that "secular names/Hindu names" were given to protest sites to give them a secular colour, and the objective of the conspirators was to escalate protests to "chakka jam" and lead the mobilised crowd to indulge in violence.
