Delhi HC Grants Bail To Asif Iqbal Tanha, Devangana Kalita And Natasha Narwal In Delhi Riots Case

The Delhi HC has granted bail to Pinjra Tod activists Devangana Kalita, Natasha Narwal, and Jamia student Asif Iqbal Tanha.

Delhi HC Grant Bail To Asif Iqbal Tanha, Devangana Kalita And Natasha Narwal In Delhi Riots Case

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday granted bail to Asif Iqbal Tanha, Devangana Kalita, and Natasha Narwal in a Delhi Riots case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

 All three were arrested under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in connection with the Delhi riots case.

Pinjra Tod activists Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal were arrested a year ago in the Delhi riots case. Last week, activists and various civil society groups came together to mark a year of the arrest of women's collective Pinjra Tod members.

According to Bar and Bench, the bail is subject to the personal bond of Rs 50,000 and two local sureties. Conditions for bail include the three surrendering their passports and not indulging in activities that would hamper the case.

The case pertains to the Delhi police probe into the "larger conspiracy" that led to the riots in the capital’s North-East area in February 2020.

Who are the three activists arrested under UAPA?

Asif Iqbal Tanha is a student pursuing his final year of the B.A. (Hons.) (Persian) Programme at Jamia Millia Islamia. He was arrested in the Delhi riots case under UAPA in May 2020 and has been in continuous custody since then.

Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita are Ph.D. scholars at Jawaharlal Nehru University, who are associated with the Pinjra Tod Collective. They have also been in custody since May 2020.

Communal clashes had broken out in northeast Delhi on February 24 last year after violence between citizenship law supporters and protesters spiralled out of control leaving at least 53 people dead and around 200 injured.