human rights defender
Umar Khalid
© The Hindu, Emmanual Yogini
Umar Khalid
HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER
HRD's year of birth
1987
HRD's Gender
Man
Type of HRD
- Academic
- Social and community leader
HRD's thematic area of engagement
- Civil and political rights
- Minorities’ rights
HRD's geographical origin
Urban
Current Status
In prison (pre-trial)
HRD's bio and work
Umar Khalid is an Indian human rights defender, scholar, and activist who has been arbitrarily detained since September 2020. An alumnus of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Khalid holds a PhD in history. He became a prominent voice in the democratic protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in late 2019 and early 2020.
Detained since
Sep 13, 2020
Charge(s)
- Anti-government propaganda
- Creating disturbances
- Damage to public property
- Other
- Subversion
- Terrorism
Sentence
The FIR 59/2020 was registered by the Delhi Police Special Cell, charging Umar Khalid under multiple statutes:
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA): Section 13: Punishment for unlawful activities. Section 16: Punishment for terrorist act. Section 17: Punishment for raising funds for terrorist acts. Section 18: Punishment for conspiracy. Indian Penal Code (IPC): Section 120B: Criminal conspiracy. Section 302: Murder. Section 307: Attempt to murder. Section 124A: Sedition (prosecution stayed by Supreme Court orders, but remains in the charge sheet). Section 153A: Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion. Section 147 & 148: Rioting and rioting armed with deadly weapon. Section 149: Every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object. Section 353: Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty. Section 186, 212, 395, 427, 435, 436, 452, 454: Assorting IPC sections relating to rioting, damage, and trespass. Arms Act, 1959: Sections 25 & 27: Possession and use of unlicensed arms. Prevention of Damage to Public Property (PDPP) Act, 1984: Sections 3 & 4: Mischief causing damage to public property.
Latitude: 28.614878297909964
Longitude: 77.10141824293368
Geolocation of detention
Country or area of detention
Region of detention
- Asia: Southern Asia
Location of detention - City/Town
New Delhi
Location of detention - Facility
Tihar Jail, New Delhi
Recent case update / evolution
The Supreme Court of India dismissed the bail application on 05 January 2026, In February the WGAD has held detention of Umar as arbitrary and on 04th July 2026, trail court in Delhi dismissed the bail application of Umar.
Attachments
Documented by
- Country(ies) of nationality
- HRD's year of birth
- 1987
- HRD's Gender
- Man
- Type of HRD
- Academic
- Social and community leader
- HRD's thematic area of engagement
- Civil and political rights
- Minorities’ rights
- HRD's Picture
- Copyright
- The Hindu, Emmanual Yogini
- HRD's bio and work
Umar Khalid is an Indian human rights defender, scholar, and activist who has been arbitrarily detained since September 2020. An alumnus of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Khalid holds a PhD in history. He became a prominent voice in the democratic protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in late 2019 and early 2020.
- HRD's geographical origin
- Urban
- Country or area of detention
- Region of detention
- Asia: Southern Asia
- Location of detention - City/Town
- New Delhi
- Location of detention - Facility
- Tihar Jail, New Delhi
- Geolocation of detention
Latitude: 28.614878297909964
Longitude: 77.10141824293368
- Geolocation of detention
- Detained since
- Sep 13, 2020
- Current Status
- In prison (pre-trial)
- Charge(s)
- Anti-government propaganda
- Creating disturbances
- Damage to public property
- Other
- Subversion
- Terrorism
- Sentence
The FIR 59/2020 was registered by the Delhi Police Special Cell, charging Umar Khalid under multiple statutes:
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA): Section 13: Punishment for unlawful activities. Section 16: Punishment for terrorist act. Section 17: Punishment for raising funds for terrorist acts. Section 18: Punishment for conspiracy. Indian Penal Code (IPC): Section 120B: Criminal conspiracy. Section 302: Murder. Section 307: Attempt to murder. Section 124A: Sedition (prosecution stayed by Supreme Court orders, but remains in the charge sheet). Section 153A: Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion. Section 147 & 148: Rioting and rioting armed with deadly weapon. Section 149: Every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object. Section 353: Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty. Section 186, 212, 395, 427, 435, 436, 452, 454: Assorting IPC sections relating to rioting, damage, and trespass. Arms Act, 1959: Sections 25 & 27: Possession and use of unlicensed arms. Prevention of Damage to Public Property (PDPP) Act, 1984: Sections 3 & 4: Mischief causing damage to public property.
- Recent case update / evolution
The Supreme Court of India dismissed the bail application on 05 January 2026, In February the WGAD has held detention of Umar as arbitrary and on 04th July 2026, trail court in Delhi dismissed the bail application of Umar.
- Documented by
- Consent status
- Consent to register, store and publish the information
sorted by
Date added
3 relationships, 2 entities