New Delhi:

Former JNU student Omar Khalid completed arguments against his bail plea in the 2020 Delhi riots case by amplifying false narratives in his favor through social media, Delhi Police told a court on Tuesday.

Mr Khalid has been accused in a larger conspiracy behind the 2020 communal riots in northeast Delhi. He has been booked under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

Justice Sameer Bajpai raised arguments against Khalid’s bail plea during an additional session on Tuesday.

Special prosecutor Amit Prasad said Mr Khalid’s mobile phone data showed that he was in touch with a number of actors, politicians, activists and celebrities and sent them some messages targeting Delhi through certain news portals Police link.

When sending these links, ask to share them on their social media accounts to set a specific narrative and amplify it.

Citing his chats with the men, who have large social media followings, Prasad said Khalid amplified his narrative as part of a conspiracy.

The Supreme People’s Procuratorate also played a video clip in court in which Mr Khalid’s father was being interviewed by a news portal.

The SPP said his father told the portal that they have no confidence in the Supreme Court. “They had no confidence in the Supreme Court, so they came to the trial court. That’s the narrative they had (in his favor),” he said.

The SPP said Mr Khalid had asked members of the WhatsApp group to arrange protests after specific Supreme Court proceedings.

He also rejected Mr Khalid’s argument seeking equality with other co-accused who had been granted bail.

The matter was released on Wednesday for a rebuttal by Mr Khalid’s lawyers.

Mr Khalid and several others have been booked under various sections of the anti-terror law UAPA and the Indian Penal Code as the alleged “masterminds” of the February 2020 riots, which left 53 people dead and more than 700 injured.

The violence broke out amid protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)