Senior Congress leader and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh ignited a fierce political firestorm today, by publicly declaring jailed activist Umar Khalid "innocent" and demanding his immediate release after over five years in custody without conviction. In a viral Facebook post and subsequent on-camera remarks during a health camp in Narsinghpur district, Singh described Khalid—a PhD scholar in history from Jawaharlal Nehru University—as a "highly educated and sensitive individual" facing "grave injustice" under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). He criticised repeated judicial delays in Khalid's bail hearings, including a postponement the previous day, asserting that "bail is a right, jail is an exception," as per Supreme Court precedents, and accused those in power of influencing the process to deny him justice.

The controversy stems from Khalid's September 2020 arrest in connection with the deadly northeast Delhi riots, which erupted in February that year amid protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, resulting in over 50 deaths—mostly Muslims—and hundreds injured in communal clashes. Delhi Police, in court affidavits, have portrayed the violence as a "deliberate and premeditated conspiracy" orchestrated by Khalid and others to incite unrest and undermine the central government, involving anti-CAA activists and inflammatory speeches. Khalid, a prominent student leader known for opposing the Act, has denied the allegations, with his legal team arguing that prolonged detention without trial violates constitutional rights; his bail pleas have been rejected multiple times by lower courts, and the Supreme Court continues to hear the matter amid charges of larger anti-national designs.

The BJP swiftly unleashed a barrage of criticism, branding Singh's comments as "anti-national" and evidence of Congress's alleged sympathy for "rioters and anti-India elements". BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari dubbed the party the "Tukde Tukde Congress"—a reference to perceived divisive slogans—and accused it of aligning with entities seeking to weaken India's unity, listing historical instances of Singh's purported overtures to figures like Osama bin Laden and Afzal Guru by using honorifics.

Madhya Pradesh BJP MLA Rameshwar Sharma escalated the rhetoric with a personal attack, claiming Singh's "behaviour and conduct now seem Pakistani and foreign" and urging him to "set up camp in Pakistan", while alleging a pattern of terrorist sympathy that could "destroy" Congress. Vishwa Hindu Parishad spokesperson Vinod Bansal echoed this, accusing leaders like Singh of misleading the nation and attempting to intimidate the judiciary. BJP figures like Shehzad Poonawalla further slammed the remarks as undermining faith in the courts, which have repeatedly denied Khalid bail based on evidence of conspiracy.

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Singh doubled down in additional posts, accusing the BJP and RSS of a "conspiracy to falsely implicate Muslims" through selective prosecutions under draconian laws like UAPA, likening it to historical persecutions and invoking "Jai Siya Ram" to underscore his critique. He cited a recent Uttar Pradesh case where four Hindus were arrested for anti-Muslim graffiti on temples, framing it as evidence of biased targeting of minorities.

This outburst aligns with Singh's long-standing vocal opposition to the RSS, whom he has previously compared to Hitler's regime, positioning Khalid's case as emblematic of an "open-air prison" for dissenters in India. As the row unfolds on social media—with X posts amplifying the divide—the episode highlights deepening partisan fissures over judicial independence, communal violence accountability, and the weaponisation of national security laws in a polarised polity.

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