Delhi court orders probe into police investigation in a Delhi riots case

A Delhi court on Wednesday ordered a police investigation into whether a deliberate attempt was made to shield five men who were discharged in a case pertaining to the Delhi riots. The five, accused of being part of a riotous mob, looting a medical shop and house of the complainant Firoz Khan and taking away medicines and cosmetics worth Rs 22-23 lakhs, was discharged by Additional Sessions Judge Virender Bhat citing a lack of evidence on February 25, 2020.

The five accused were not let off because the alleged incident did not happen or because they were falsely implicated. Instead, they were let off for the sole reason that no sufficient evidence could be produced against them, said the judge.

"Let the DCP North-East District conduct an enquiry into the manner in which the investigation was conducted by the IO in this case to find out whether or not there had been any deliberate attempt to shield the offenders and submit a report to this Court on the next date of hearing," he ordered.

Firoz Khan was the sole witness in the case. He claims to have identified the accused as assailants from photographs shown to him in the police station.

"There should be sufficient and legally admissible evidence on the basis of which charges can be framed against an accused, which is lacking in the instant case," ASJ Bhat stated in the November 22 order. Whether or not the investigating officer (IO) made efforts to trace other witnesses is unclear, he added.

"It is not clear as to whether the IO chose not to find out any other witness or whether no other person came forward who had seen the incident in question," the judge said.

A pogrom targeting the minority Muslim community erupted in northeast Delhi in February 2020 after supporters and protestors of the Citizenship Amendment Act clashed. About 53 were killed and over 700 injured.