"In our system, process becomes punishment": Former SC judge on Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam case

New Delhi: Former Supreme Court judge Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, addressing the denial of bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, asserted that the pre-conviction or acquittal period has become a punishment in the country. He maintained that such a prolonged process turns into a punishment, asserting that bail should remain the norm in such matters.
In an interview with ANI, Kaul stated that even though he maintains a very liberal view on bail, certain statutes explicitly prohibit bail in certain cases.
"I have taken a generally very liberal view on bail. I feel the bail cannot be the punishment. The conviction is the punishment. In our system, unfortunately, the pre-conviction or acquittal period itself becomes a punishment. The process becomes a punishment," he said.
"And many judges have been writing and talking about it. In fact, I, sitting with Justice Sundaresh, had dealt elaborately with the bail itself, trying to say, why are you people under custody? Justice Sundaresh wrote the judgment. He's, to my mind, a liberal judge on this. And we tried to lay down norms, etc., which were already in existence, but trying to, you know, until this case. So in most cases, our view is, that bail should be the norm. But there are certain acts which prohibit bail," said Kaul.
Former Supreme Court judge Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, alongside Jay Vinayak Ojha, has authored an upcoming memoir titled "Without Fear or Favour", which is set to be released on October 31.
Khalid and Imam are accused under the UAPA in connection with the alleged larger conspiracy relating to the February 2020 northeast Delhi riots, in which 53 people were killed and more than 700 injured, according to the prosecution.
The violence erupted during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 and the proposed National Register of Citizens.
The Supreme Court, on January 5 this year, denied bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in a case pertaining to an alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 north-east Delhi riots. In its judgement, the Court noted that Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam stand on a "qualitatively different footing" both in terms of prosecution and evidence.
Recently, in September, the Delhi High Court also rejected the bail pleas of Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam. The case arises from FIR 59/2020 registered by the Delhi Police Special Cell concerning the alleged larger conspiracy behind the February 2020 North-East Delhi riots.