Karnataka High Court Dismisses Bail Plea of SDPI Leader in 2020 Bengaluru Riots Case [Read Judgment]

The Karnataka High Court dismissed a bail application filed by Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) leader Imran Ahmed in the 2020 Bengaluru riots, triggered by a controversial Facebook post by a  Congress MLA's nephew in response to abhorrent post on Hindu religion.

A division bench of Justices Krishna S Dixit and Pradeep Singh Yerur said that the interest of an individual cannot march over the collective interest of the society.

“We are of the considered view that the cause of justice would be served more by continuing him in confinement than setting him free. This being said, we hasten to add that the subject case needs to be expeditiously tried since there are several accused persons, who have suffered rejection of their bail petitions and as a consequence, are continuing in judicial custody. They have a fundamental right to speedy justice, cannot be lost sight of. In our view, this is a fit case for speedy trial, if possible, on a day-to-day basis. We are also aware of the burden that the learned trial judge of the special court shoulders,” the bench said.

The court rejected a contention by the accused that 'Bail is a rule and jail is an exception’, saying such a dicta has to remain miles away when the class of offences under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, which the accused is ascribed of, arise under a special statute of great significance, like the one at hands; secondly, the Parliament in its accumulated wisdom has enacted the clauses in the 1967 Act that severely restrict the claim for grant of bail.

On the eventful night of August 11, 2020, riots broke out in the K.G.Halli area of Bangalore City. The miscreants had attacked the local police station and had set it on fire, there was extensive damage to the private and public property. The government and private vehicles were ransacked; members of the public were terrorized; police officials who could have run for saving their lives limbs, held the ground despite being attacked with stones, iron rods, wooden sticks, ‘improvised petrol bombs’ and such other weapons. Ultimately, the police had to resort to lathi charge, and firing too to dispel the organised offenders. The incident with enormous infamy, came to be known as ‘K.G.Halli Riots’.

The NIA filed the charge sheet on February 5, 2021, arraigning the petitioner as accused no 22. His first bail petition was denied by the NIA special court, and this decision was upheld by the High Court. Imran made another appeal to the High Court after his second bail application was rejected by the NIA court.

In the appeal, the petitioner emphasised at the longevity of confinement.

The special public prosecutor opposed the plea, contending that an attack on the police station and the police personnel on duty are nothing short of an attack on the sovereignty of the country.

In its order, the court said that though the Facebook post was condemnable, the swiftness of gathering, the hugeness of its size, the enormity of the terror generated, the shortness of the duration of perpetration, and the hugeness of loss to property make out a prima facie case for repelling the contention that all that had happened was at the spur of moment and as a reaction to a condemnable Facebook post.

The court also said the NIA placed abundant materials on record such as the video and photographs of the incident that prima facie demonstrated that the accused was an active participant in the incident.

[Read Judgment]