A court in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday acquitted 22 individuals in a case related to murder, loot, and arson during the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, citing insufficient evidence, PTI reported.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Kanishk Kumar noted that the prosecution had failed to prove the charges against the accused beyond a reasonable doubt, according to The Times of India. The case involved violence reported from Mohammadpur Raisingh village on September 8, 2013.
The prosecution stated that the complaint was filed by a man named Haneef, whose father had been beaten to death during the violence. Haneef alleged that rioters attacked homes in the village, looted property, and set several houses on fire. The rioters also reportedly damaged a mosque and set fire to a motorcycle belonging to a police constable.
A government counsel said a special investigation team had filed a chargesheet against 26 individuals following the incident. Four of the accused died while the trial was ongoing.
The Muzaffarnagar riots erupted in September 2013 after Bharatiya Janata Party leaders, including state minister Suresh Rana, former MLA Sangeet Som, and former MP Bharatendra Singh, allegedly delivered inflammatory speeches. At least 60 people were killed, and thousands of Muslim families were displaced. Reports of sexual assault and abuse also emerged from Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts during the unrest.