Supreme Court denies bail to Umar Khalid, U.S.’s push for Venezuelan oil, Anti-regime protests in Iran, and more: The week in 5 charts

(1) Supreme Court denies bail to Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam

The Supreme Court on January 5 declined to grant bail to activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case, notwithstanding their incarceration for nearly six years without the commencement of trial.

A Bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and N.V. Anjaria, however, granted conditional bail to five other co-accused, drawing a clear distinction between their alleged roles and those attributed to Mr. Khalid and Mr. Imam. The court held that the allegations against Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa-ur-Rehman, Mohd. Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmed reflected conduct of a subsidiary or facilitative nature, thereby warranting differential treatment.

The court said the evidence on record prima facie attributed to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam a “central and formative role” in the orchestration of the violence. A timeline on the arrest and bail plea of Umar Khalid is shown in the graphic below.

(2) U.S. re-focuses on Venezuelan oil

After strikes in Venezuela last year and the U.S. ‘capture’ of Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro, U.S. President Donald Trump said that Venezuela will send between 30 to 50 billion barrels of sanctioned oil. Mr. Trump added that this oil will be sold at market price (worth around $3 billion in total), with the proceeds used for the needs of the U.S. and Venezuelan people, without giving further details. The country’s interim leader – Delcy Rodriguez – did not respond to Mr. Trump’s claim.

U.S. refineries along the Gulf Coast, originally built with complex infrastructure ideal for handling heavy oils like Venezuela’s, shifted to shale as shale production boomed after 2010. Now, with this supply of heavy oil from Venezuela, these refineries will take advantage of existing infrastructure to buy the cheaper oil and optimise operations.

Trump has framed the oil as the U.S.’s rightful property, and said that U.S. involvement in the Venezuelan oil industry will bring ‘economic prosperity’ and safety to both countries. In the short term, gains are limited. Production capacities in Venezuela cannot be scaled up in the short-term drastically, due to several complex infrastructural issues and insufficient investment through the years.

(3) At least 8 deaths due to water contamination in Indore

A diarrhoea outbreak in Indore related to the government-supplied contaminated water has led to the deaths of at least 8 people. While locals claim that 18 people have died, the outbreak has led to over 400 people being admitted in hospitals across Indore for treatment. Records show that 18 families were paid a compensation of ₹2 lakh each, announced for the kin of the deceased. A medical committee has been formed to verify medical records of others who allegedly died due to the contamination issue.

This is the second tragedy within six months that has dented the brand of Indore being a clean city. 

(4) Protests in Iran expand, fatalities registered

Over the last week, protests in Iran against increasing inflation, weakening national currency rial and poor governance have intensified, spreading across the country from limited protests in December last year. At least 45 people have been killed after authorities cracked down. The government imposed a nationwide internet shutdown on Thursday last week (January 8, 2025) in response.

Following the 12-day war with Israel and tightening sanctions, Iran’s currency took a hit, triggering anger against the Iranian theocracy. Here is a timeline of events showing escalation since December 28, 2025.

Protesters chanted “death to the dictator”, referring to the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and torched official buildings. The son of the shah of Iran, ousted Reza Pahlavi called for more protests on the streets on Friday last week (January 9, 2025) after a similar call the previous day. These protests are said to be the biggest since those in 2022-2023 after the custody death of Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested for violating the Islamic republic’s dress code.

(5) India refutes US claim that trade deal stalled due to PM

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, in a podcast on Thursday (January 8, 2026), said the trade deal with India did not happen because Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not call U.S. President Donald Trump.

Mr. Lutnick’s remarks came a few days after Mr. Trump said that Mr. Modi knew he was unhappy with India’s purchases of Russian oil and that Washington could raise tariffs on New Delhi “very quickly”.

The threat by the U.S. President came at a time when the two countries were negotiating a bilateral trade agreement. So far, six rounds of negotiations have been held for that. The pact includes a framework deal to resolve the 50% tariffs on Indian goods entering America.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Friday (January 9, 2026) reiterated India’s commitment to a “balanced” trade pact with the United States and said the latest remarks made by the U.S. Commerce Secretary were not “accurate”.

“The characterisation of these discussions in the reported remarks is not accurate. We remain interested in a mutually beneficial trade deal between two complementary economies and look forward to concluding it. Incidentally, Prime Minister Modi and President Trump have also spoken on phone on eight occasions during 2025, covering different aspects of our wide-ranging partnership,” said Mr. Jaiswal.

Published – January 13, 2026 12:50 pm IST