Speeches alone can’t draw UAPA, riots accused tell SC

Giving a provocative speech cannot by itself constitute an offence under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) ‘Act (UAPA), the accused in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case told the Supreme Court on Tuesday, as the bench granted them one more day to conclude arguments on their bail pleas.

- Abraham Thomas

‘A bench of justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria pressed the defence to respond to the core charge - that the speeches were not isolated political expressions but part of a coordinated platform to trigger violence.

“The prosecution has alleged that you created a platform to stage violence. How do you get over that?” the bench asked while hearing senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Kapil Sibal and Siddharth Dave, appearing for Gulfisha Fatima, Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam respectively.