The Delhi Police has filed an affidavit before the Supreme Court opposing the bail pleas of Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Meeran Haider, Gulfisha Fatima, and others accused in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case. The police have said that the violence was part of a planned “regime-change operation” designed to destabilise India and damage its image globally.

The affidavit, accessed by India Today, was filed in response to the Supreme Court’s notice dated September 22 that asked the Delhi Police to present its view on the bail petitions of the accused. These petitions challenge the Delhi High Court’s decision that denied them relief under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act case linked to the 2020 violence.

The police stated that they had gathered witness statements, documents, and technical evidence connecting the accused to a “deep-rooted conspiracy engineered on communal lines.”

“The messaging, tone, and references therein were not incidental but deliberate, reflecting an overarching aim to destabilise the country by setting up a global narrative of ethnic cleansing or pogrom of the Muslim community under the proposed Citizenship (Amendment) Act,” the affidavit said.

The Delhi Police said the violence was timed to take place during US President Donald Trump’s visit to India, to draw international attention and portray the country negatively.

The police further said that the Citizenship Amendment Act issue was “carefully chosen to serve as a radicalising catalyst camouflaged as a peaceful protest.”

The affidavit told the top court that the accused did not intend to voice political dissent or personal grievances but to provoke violence that had “direct implications on the nation’s economic and social fabric, leading to serious ramifications against the broader society.”

The Delhi Police accused the petitioners, including Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Meeran Haider, and Gulfisha Fatima, of deliberately delaying trial proceedings through what it called “frivolous applications” and “coordinated non-cooperation.”

According to the affidavit, the accused engaged in a “brazen abuse of process” to prevent the lower court from framing charges and beginning the trial. The police said that the delay in proceedings was caused by the accused themselves, not by the investigative agencies.

The affidavit described the claim that the trial would take too long because of 900 witnesses as “a red herring manufactured to obtain bail,” adding that only about 100 key witnesses would be examined and that the trial could move quickly if the accused cooperated.

Citing the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Delhi Police said that “jail, not bail” is the rule for such serious offences linked to terrorism. The affidavit stated that the accused had failed to counter the presumption of guilt and that the seriousness of the charges made it improper to release them on bail simply due to trial delays.

Officials dismissed concerns about the large number of witnesses, explaining that only 100 to 150 were material and that the trial could end quickly if the accused cooperated.

The affidavit described Umar Khalid as “the founder of the idea of Chakka Jam for riots.” It stated that the Delhi Protest Support Group was formed to carry out the conspiracy, supported by chat records and photographs as evidence.

The police alleged that during a secret meeting in Seelampur, Khalid told the other accused to convince local women to gather knives, bottles, acids, stones, chilli powder, and other items to incite riots. When the “desired scale of violence” was not achieved, Khalid allegedly arranged for Bangladeshi women from Jahangirpuri to join the protests at Jaffrabad.

The affidavit also highlighted Sharjeel Imam’s role, describing him as working “under the tutelage of Umar Khalid and other top conspirators” and as a main planner of the first phase of the riots that took place between December 13 and 20, 2019.

The police claimed that Imam provoked people through speeches at Jamia Millia Islamia and Asansol, urging for a “Chakka Jam” in the capital to disrupt essential services like milk and water. He was also accused of coordinating with radical groups, distributing pamphlets that encouraged communal tensions.

The affidavit stated that Imam urged Jamia and JNU students to carry out disruptive blockades and warned that any disturbance in the capital would attract global attention. His speech in January 2020, according to the police, “threatened the unity, integrity, and sovereignty of India” by calling for Muslim-majority areas to be separated from the Union.

The police referred to chat messages mentioning Donald Trump to claim that the riots were pre-planned and timed with his visit to India. According to the affidavit, this was done to draw international media attention and “globalise” the CAA issue by showing it as a targeted campaign against Muslims.

The police said the conspiracy led to the deaths of 53 people, major destruction of property, and more than 750 FIRs in Delhi. The materials on record, according to the affidavit, show that the violence was meant to be spread across India, suggesting a larger plan of nationwide mobilisation.