{"id":81193,"date":"2026-01-06T11:01:53","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T05:31:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=81193"},"modified":"2026-01-06T11:56:17","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T06:26:17","slug":"how-the-supreme-court-broadened-the-meaning-of-terrorist-act-under-uapa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/how-the-supreme-court-broadened-the-meaning-of-terrorist-act-under-uapa\/","title":{"rendered":"How the Supreme Court Broadened the Meaning of Terrorist Act Under UAPA"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Meaning of Terrorist Act Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Supreme Court of India granted <\/span><b>bail<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to five of the seven accused in the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots case but denied relief to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Court held that the accused did not stand on equal footing, <\/span><b>creating a hierarchy of culpability<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by distinguishing <\/span><b>alleged principal planners<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> from those with subsidiary or facilitative roles, even though all faced similar charges.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All accused are booked under the <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/unlawful-activities-prevention-act\/\" target=\"_blank\">Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, along with the Arms Act and other penal provisions.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Central to the ruling are two issues: what constitutes a \u201cterrorist act\u201d and who determines it, and whether prolonged pre-trial incarceration is justified under anti-terror law.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Beyond immediate bail outcomes, the order endorses an <\/span><b>expansive interpretation of \u201cterrorist act<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d, with implications for future UAPA cases.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Hierarchy of Roles\u2019 in the Alleged Conspiracy<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Supreme Court of India centred its bail decision on an <\/span><b>individualised assessment of culpability<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, holding that the accused did not occupy the same position within the alleged conspiracy.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Court noted a clear hierarchy of roles, rather than treating all accused as equally culpable.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Principal Accused: Alleged Masterminds<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, the Court found that prosecution material placed them at the level of conceptualisation, direction, orchestration, and mobilisation.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They were described as \u201c<\/span><b>ideological drivers<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d and \u201c<\/span><b>masterminds<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d, allegedly responsible for strategising the transformation of protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act into disruptive chakka jams aimed at paralysing Delhi.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The allegations suggested a central and directive role.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Co-Accused Granted Bail: Peripheral Roles<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In contrast, the five accused granted bail were characterised as \u201clocal-level facilitators\u201d or \u201csite-level executors\u201d.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Their roles were termed derivative, indicating that they acted on instructions from higher levels of the alleged conspiracy rather than shaping it.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Court held that continued incarceration of these minor participants would be disproportionate, especially since the investigation was complete and the trial had seen significant delays.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>How the Law Defines a \u2018Terrorist Act\u2019<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Section 15<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) defines a terrorist act as one carried out with intent to threaten India\u2019s unity, integrity, security, economic security, or sovereignty, or to strike terror among people.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The provision lists methods such as bombs, explosives, firearms, or inflammable substances, and also adds a broader clause\u2014\u201cor any other means\u201d.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The prosecution argued that an alleged \u201cchakka jam\u201d (road blockade) planned by the accused could fall under \u201cany other means\u201d, even if it did not involve conventional weapons, because of its intended impact and consequences.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Defence\u2019s Stand: Protest Is Not Terror<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Defence Counsel contended that road blockades are a legitimate democratic protest.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Since Section 15 primarily refers to violent methods, he argued that \u201cany other means\u201d should be read narrowly to include only other violent means.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Supreme Court\u2019s View<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rejecting the defence claim that the acts were mere political dissent, the Court accepted the prosecution\u2019s view that sustained choking of arterial roads and systemic disruption of civic life can amount to calibrated acts threatening India\u2019s unity and integrity.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When such blockades are planned, synchronised, and timed with international events\u2014such as the Donald Trump visit in 2020\u2014they <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">may prima facie fall within the definition of a terrorist act<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Court emphasised that the focus is not just on the weapon used, but on the <\/span><b>design, intent, and effect of the act<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Impact on Bail Under Section 43D(5)<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Under Section 43D(5) of the UAPA, bail is barred if accusations appear prima facie true.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Applying this, the Court found that witness statements, chats, and meeting records established a prima facie conspiracy against Khalid and Sharjeel Imam.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As a result, the statutory bar on bail operated fully against them.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Prolonged Incarceration and the Bail Question<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All appellants highlighted their long custody since 2020, with the trial still at the charge-framing stage.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They relied on the <\/span><b><i>Union of India v. K A Najeeb<\/i><\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> ruling, where the Supreme Court of India held that constitutional courts may grant bail under UAPA if there is no likelihood of a speedy trial, to protect Article 21 rights to life and liberty.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>SC\u2019s Clarification on K.A. Najeeb<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Court clarified that K.A. Najeeb is not a mechanical rule.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Delay does not automatically override statutory bail bars; it acts as a trigger for heightened judicial scrutiny, not a \u201ctrump card.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Court noted the voluminous record\u2014over 1,000 documents and 835 witnesses\u2014and procedural objections by the defence, holding that the delay cannot be attributed solely to the prosecution.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Court held that delay must be weighed against the gravity of the offence and the role of the accused.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For alleged \u201cmasterminds\u201d Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, their conspiratorial centrality meant the statutory bar on bail prevailed despite delay.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For co-accused characterised as facilitators with limited logistical or local roles, continued custody was deemed punitive.\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As they lacked the autonomous capacity to affect the trial, the balance tilted in favour of liberty.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Source:<\/b> <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-law\/delhi-riots-case-bail-umar-khalid-sharjeel-imam-10457036\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">IE<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-law\/bail-umar-khalid-sharjeel-imam-definition-terrorist-act-10456611\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">IE<\/a> | <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.livelaw.in\/top-stories\/umar-khalid-sharjeel-imam-had-central-role-in-alleged-conspiracy-why-supreme-court-denied-them-bail-516920\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>LL<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Supreme Court broadened the meaning of terrorist act under UAPA, affecting bail, protest cases, and prolonged incarceration in the Delhi riots case.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":81215,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[60,4582,22,59],"class_list":{"0":"post-81193","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"tag-mains-articles","9":"tag-meaning-of-terrorist-act","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81193","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81193"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81193\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/81215"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81193"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81193"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81193"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}