[Delhi Riots] I am on police radar, media covered speeches: Umar Khalid refutes charges of secret conspiracy

Senior Advocate Trideep Pais on Friday rebutted the prosecution’s arguments in the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act case filed against Umar Khalid in relation to the 2020 Delhi Riots [Umar Khalid v. State]..Appearing before Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat, Pais argued,“Not like I am not on your radar. I am on bail. Media is reporting on every speech given by me. A policeman has my number and calls me.” Pais thus sought to counter the allegation of conspiracy and questioned how could he be accused of “silently” conspiring. .He also dealt with the allegations made in the chargesheet, as per which Khalid was stated to have held meetings, attended protests and delivered speeches.“A chargesheet cannot be a narrative without a basis. The supplementary chargesheet is without a basis,” argued Pais. It was contended that merely showing that Khalid visited a place or gave speeches did not indicate criminality on his part..After reading an allegation, Pais said,“Assuming he visited Jamia. There is no criminality in going to Jamia.”He also cited Special Public Prosecutor Amit Prasad's statement that “investigation is still going on” when asked why some were arrested and chargesheeted in the case whereas others who have been named in the case had been left out..Khalid was alleged to be a part of the Delhi Protest Support Group since December 5, 2019, and connected to other accused persons. The prosecutor earlier argued that Khalid was present in a meeting on January 23, 2020, and prior to that, he had met co-accused Tahir Hussain..Pais, thus, argued, “Investigation is ongoing is not an answer. We are talking about February 2020. You cannot say Umar Khalid and others were there in meeting…. You have to show what is the qualitative difference in action of me and others. I am in custody.”Contesting the submission that Khalid and others had held a secret meeting as a part of the alleged conspiracy, the senior counsel argued that the prosecution had relied on selfies being shared on social media.“I cannot believe that such material can show any secrecy,” he said..Pais will continue with his arguments on Saturday..[Read a live account of the hearing]