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This is an archive article published on April 13, 2024

2020 Delhi riots: Bail conditions modified, ex-Congress councillor Ishrat Jahan can now travel across India

Ishrat Jahan, a practising advocate, had moved court saying the bail condition inhibiting her from travelling outside the National Capital Region without court permission was affecting her profession.

Ishrat JahanIshrat Jahan had earlier been granted bail in another case in which she was accused of inciting a crowd at an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protest site in Northeast Delhi’s Khureji Khas. (Express Archives)

A Delhi court on Friday modified former Delhi Congress councillor Ishrat Jahan’s bail conditions allowing her to travel all over India without prior permission of the court. A practising advocate, Jahan was the first person to be granted bail after spending two years in jail in the Delhi riots Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) case in 2022.

However, a trial court granted bail to Jahan with the condition that she must not leave the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi without prior permission from the court. Later, this condition was modified to Delhi National Capital Region (NCR).

Dissatisfied with this bail condition, advocate Aadil Singh Boparai representing Jahan moved an application stating that the bail condition inhibiting her from travelling outside NCR without the permission of the court was affecting her professional pursuits to practise before other courts in India.

Granting her request, the court modified the bail condition to the extent that she “shall neither leave the territory of India without prior permission of the court nor shall indulge in any kind of criminal activity”.

Jahan’s application was opposed by the prosecution which submitted that the court had already granted reasonable liberties to the accused and that no further relief should be granted to her.

Observing that “she was neither physically present in Northeast Delhi for riots nor was she part of any group”, a Delhi court in March 2022 had granted bail to Jahan in a UAPA case relating to the 2020 riots. She had also earlier been granted bail in another case in which she was accused of inciting a crowd at an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protest site in Northeast Delhi’s Khureji Khas.

Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023. Professional Background Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University. Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories. Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts. Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials. Recent notable articles In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories. 1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey.  2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation. 3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police. Signature Style Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public. X (Twitter): @Nirbhaya99 ... Read More

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