Mumbai: Speaking to a crowded hall at the Mumbai Marathi Patrakar Sangh on Tuesday (February 10, 2026) night, Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas, the father of former Jawaharlal Nehru University scholar and activist Umar Khalid, broke down in tears. He recalled in a tearful voice how his son had twice turned down scholarship offers from American universities, preferring to stay in India because he felt he must work “for the people of his country”.Speaking at Innocence Network India’s ninth Shahid Azmi Memorial Lecture, Ilyas explained that the case against his son was a part of a “broader programme to keep intellectuals and those who could have worked for the country away from public life”. He spoke to a hall full of activists, attorneys, relatives of those incarcerated in various cases and some former arrestees. Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves and Sudha Bharadwaj were among those in attendance.The place was packed, with people waiting outside and swarming into the hallways. Throughout the proceedings, the audience paid close attention.The speakers at this year’s lecture included Sanober Keshwar, who once taught Shahid Azmi at K.C. College and later collaborated with him at the Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights (CPDR) and senior advocate Sudeep Pasbola. Aasif Mujtaba – who co-organised the Shaheen Bagh protest with Sharjeel Imam and an accused in FIR No. 59/2020, also known as the Delhi conspiracy case – also spoke at the memorial lecture.The lecture, titled “How the Denial of Bail to Umar and Sharjeel Shatters the Hope of Many Others” explored the wider ramifications of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling to deny the two Muslim activists bail. Speakers talked about the wider implications of such rulings for civil liberties.Keshwar opened the event by recalling Azmi as a dedicated lawyer who devoted his career to protecting the weak. He was fighting for people on the edges of the criminal justice system when his life was cut short, she said.Also read: Backstory: Umar’s and Sharjeel’s Continued Incarceration Presages Our OwnSpeaking about the Supreme Court’s denial of bail to Khalid and Imam, other speakers at the event concentrated on Section 43(D)(5) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), which severely limits access to bail. Worries have been expressed that sweeping interpretations of this clause might bring protests and political speeches under the purview of anti-terror laws.In his address, Mujtaba questioned what recourse remained if “courts failed to deliver justice”. “We had this question earlier as well. What does one do when courts stop giving justice?” he asked, linking the anti-CAA and NRC protests to what he described as a broader sense of institutional failure.He argued that the separation of powers between the executive, legislature and judiciary had weakened, and that those who sought to resolve political disagreements through peaceful protest were being incarcerated. Referring to Imam’s continued detention in the Delhi conspiracy case, he said that while Imam had already secured bail in the case related to a controversial speech that frequently resurfaces online, he remained imprisoned in FIR No. 59/2020. Mujtaba alleged that there was a sustained effort to demonise the Shaheen Bagh protest model despite its emphasis on peaceful resistance.Mujtaba further claimed that narratives around the 2020 Delhi violence had been selectively constructed, arguing that individuals he described as responsible for instigating violence were free, while those associated with peaceful protest remained behind bars. According to him, Imam’s advocacy of non-violent protest at Shaheen Bagh is precisely what has resulted in his prolonged incarceration.The Shahid Azmi Memorial Lecture has consistently focused on themes of civil liberties and the criminal justice system. Organisers said the series seeks to foster dialogue around due process, constitutional safeguards and the protection of democratic rights.Nishtha Sood is a researcher and journalist with a degree in Politics and International Relations from SOAS, University of London, has been working with Dr Abdul Wahid Shaikh and documenting cases of custodial torture and human rights abuses in India since 2017.