8 US Lawmakers Seek Bail, Timely Trial For Umar Khalid; Question His Detention In Delhi Riots Case

Last Updated:January 02, 2026, 13:03 IST

Eight US lawmakers have urged India to grant bail and ensure a fair trial for Umar Khalid, citing his pretrial detention as inconsistent with international legal standards.

A file photo of activist Umar Khalid (PTI)

Eight US Democratic lawmakers have written to India’s Ambassador in Washington, seeking bail and a fair, timely trial for activist Umar Khalid, who has been in jail for over five years without trial under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), raising concerns over prolonged pretrial detention and international legal standards.

The letter, led by US Representatives Jim McGovern and Jamie Raskin, urges Indian authorities to grant Khalid bail and ensure that his trial begins without further delay.

Khalid, a former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student, was arrested in connection with the alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots and has remained incarcerated since then.

Besides McGovern and Raskin, the signatories to the letter include Democratic lawmakers Chris Van Hollen, Peter Welch, Pramila Jayapal, Jan Schakowsky, Rashida Tlaib and Lloyd Doggett.

While underscoring their “respect for India’s democratic institutions," the lawmakers questioned how Khalid’s continued detention without the commencement of trial aligns with international legal norms.

They also sought an explanation for why judicial proceedings have not yet begun more than five years after his arrest.

In the letter, the lawmakers pressed New Delhi to ensure that Khalid is afforded due process and that his case is heard in a fair and timely manner.

They flagged concerns over the prolonged use of pretrial detention under India’s anti-terror law and its implications for civil liberties.

McGovern subsequently amplified the appeal through a social media post, stating that he had met Khalid’s parents in Washington earlier this month.

“Earlier this month, I met with the parents of Umar Khalid, who has been jailed in India for over five years without trial," McGovern wrote.

He added that he and Raskin were leading their colleagues in urging Indian authorities to grant Khalid bail and a fair, timely trial in accordance with international law.

Later, BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari slammed Rahul Gandhi and alleged that Gandhi and the Congress party “want to weaken India, defame its elected government, and dilute its anti-terror laws seem to inevitably converge around him."

In an X post, Bhandari listed Rahul Gandhi’s visits to the United States and threw light on his meetings with those who wrote to the Indian government about different accused persons.

He stressed that Rahul Gandhi had met Jan Schakowsky in the US in 2024, and now, the same Jan Schakowsky has written to the government of India for the release of Umar Khalid.

“Every time an anti-India narrative is peddled abroad, one name keeps recurring in the background: Rahul Gandhi," Bhandari wrote in the X post.

The intervention by the US lawmakers comes even as Indian courts have granted Khalid interim bail on limited occasions.

On December 11, a Delhi court granted Khalid interim bail from December 16 to 29 to attend his sister’s wedding.

According to a PTI report, Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai allowed the interim relief in the case related to the alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots.

The court directed Khalid to furnish a personal bond of Rs 20,000 along with two sureties of the same amount.

During the interim bail period, the court imposed several conditions, including a restriction on the use of social media.

Khalid was directed to meet only family members, relatives and friends and to remain at his home or at venues where the wedding ceremonies were scheduled to take place.

The court further ordered that Khalid must not contact any witnesses in the case and must share his mobile phone number with the investigating officer.

He was also directed to surrender to prison authorities on the evening of December 29.

Khalid had earlier been granted interim bail on similar grounds.

Last year, he was allowed seven days of interim bail to attend another wedding, and he was also granted comparable relief in 2022.

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