Not allowed to step out of cell causing stress: Umar Khalid to court

A Delhi court on Thursday directed the Tihar Jail superintendent to appear before it after former Jawaharlal Nehru University JNU student Umar Khalid informed the court that he is not being allowed to step out of his jail cell which he claimed is akin to solitary confinement taking a toll on his mental and physical healthOn September 24 Additional Sessions Judge of the Karkardooma Court Amitabh Rawat had sent Khalid to judicial custody till October 22 He was produced before the court through a video conference at the end of his remand period on ThursdayThe Special Cell of Delhi Police had arrested Khalid on September 13 under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act UAPA In the FIR the police had claimed that the communal violence that broke out in northeast Delhi in February this year was a premeditated conspiracy which was allegedly hatched by Khalid and othersI am aware of the order passed by the court that I should be given adequate security cover and continue with the normal jail routine without any discrimination or distinction However in the last 34 days I have not been allowed to step out of my jail cell and I am alone in it It is practically solitary confinement Khalid told the courtThe court has now asked the Tihar Jail superintendent to appear before it on Friday The judge also reserved the order on the extension of judicial remand of Khalid and JNU research scholar Sharjeel Imam for Friday Police have sought extension of their remand for 30 more daysKhalid further informed the court I wanted to bring it to your notice since it is in convention to your orders On Wednesday I was shown an order passed by additional superintendent Pradeep Sharma of Jail 2 in which it was stated that I should not be allowed out of my cell for 24 hours a dayThe former JNU student added that he was allowed to step out of the cell for 10 minutes in the morning when the jail superintendent came to visit himAfter 10 minutes I was again put inside my cell This is causing me extreme discomfort apart from the mental stressI have also not been well for the last three days and not being allowed to go for a walk only adds to my physical discomfort It is like a punishment I reiterate that I need security but it does not mean that I will not be allowed out for the whole day Khalid saidHe further complained to the court that the jail staff refused to unmute the microphone for him to talk to the judge during the video conference To this the court lambasted the staff saying If the undertrial wants to say something you must inform the court so that he can be unmuted Please take care of itOn March 6 an FIR was registered against Khalid and one Danish based on information provided by an informer to Crime Branch subinspector Arvind KumarAccording to the FIR complainant Arvind Kumar said that the riots in northeast Delhi were premeditated The conspiracy was hatched by Umar Khalid and two others associated with different organisations the FIR statedKhalid gave provocative speeches at two different places and appealed to the people to block the roads during US President Donald Trumps visit to spread propaganda at the international level about how minorities in India were being persecuted the FIR addedKhalid and his associates brought women and children to the road at several places in a bid to hatch a conspiracy to incite riots the subinspector alleged adding that firearms petrol bombs acid bottles and stones were stored at homes in Kardampuri Jafrabad Chand Bagh Gokulpuri Shiv Vihar and nearby areas as part of the conspiracyExplaining the conspiracy the complainant said that coaccused Danish was given the responsibility of gathering people from different places to take part in the violenceOn February 23 women and children were made to block the roads under the Jafrabad Metro Station to create tension amid the neighbourhood people in a bid to give rise to riots it addedCommunal violence broke out in northeast Delhi on February 24 after clashes between the pro and antiCitizenship Amendment Act supporters spiralled out of control leaving 53 people dead and 748 injuredKhalid has also been named in the chargesheets filed in various cases related to the riots He was also arrested on October 1 in a case related to the riots in the Khajuri Khas areaKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest newsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever