The Delhi Police argued before the Supreme Court that the 2020 communal riots were planned for regime change and timed with Donald Trump's visit to India. They opposed bail for accused like Sharjeel Imam and Umar Khalid, warning of the dangers posed by 'intellectual terrorists'. The hearings highlighted inflammatory speeches and communal mobilization efforts.
In a Supreme Court hearing on November 21, 2025, the Delhi Police reiterated that the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots were orchestrated to achieve regime change and economic strangulation, deliberately timed to coincide with then-US President Donald Trump's visit for international media coverage. Appearing for the police, Additional Solicitor General S V Raju opposed bail pleas from nine accused, including Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, whose lower court bail requests were rejected by the Delhi High Court on September 2.
Raju emphasized the role of intellectuals in the conspiracy, stating, “intellectuals when they guide and become terrorists, they become more dangerous than those working at the ground…. Because of state support-state fundings and subsidies, they become doctors and activists — these types of activists are dangerous.” He presented video clips of Sharjeel Imam's speeches, an engineering graduate, allegedly calling for 'chakka jam' blockades and severing the 'Chicken’s Neck' corridor in Assam's Siliguri, which connects mainland India to the northeast. Raju argued these were inflammatory and anti-national, part of the chargesheet, and aimed at economic disruption under the UAPA Act, including choking essential supplies like milk and vegetables in Delhi.
The police contended the riots, which killed 59 people and led to the lynching of a police officer, involved breaking the secular fabric at Jawaharlal Nehru University through a communal WhatsApp group, Muslim Students of JNU (MSJ), and coordination with Students of Jamia (SOJ). Raju noted Imam's references to violence, Kashmir, triple talaq, and Babri Masjid to provoke Muslims. Due to the offence's gravity, 47 witnesses received protected status, with 38 statements under Section 164 CrPC and others under Section 161; overall, about 155 public witnesses, 58 under Section 164.
Earlier, Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita, and Asif Iqbal Tanha received High Court bail in June 2021, while Ishrat Jahan got hers in March 2022. Arguments remained incomplete and were set to continue on November 22.