In a significant development in the cases related to the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots, the Karkardooma Court in Delhi has acquitted ten individuals due to insufficient evidence.
Additional Sessions Judge Pulastya Pramachala ruled that the statements and evidence from three prosecution witnesses were unreliable.
The acquitted individuals include Mohammad Shahnawaz, also known as Shanu, Mohammad Shoaib, Shahrukh, Rashid alias Raja, Azad, Ashraf Ali, Parvez, Mohammad Faisal, Rashid alias Monu, and Mohammad Tahir.
The Gokulpuri police station registered the cases, charging the suspects with rioting (Sections 147, 148, 149), arson (Section 436), burglary (Section 454), robbery (Section 392), housebreaking (Section 452), disobedience (Section 188), promoting enmity (Section 153A), mischief (Section 427), and criminal intimidation (Section 506).
The complaint, filed by Satish Kumar on 1 March 2020, detailed an incident on 24 February 2020, when a mob of 1,500 to 2,000 people allegedly stormed his three-story building in Brijpuri.
Armed with weapons, the mob looted and vandalized Kumar’s mobile phone shop, threatened him and his family to leave their home or face burning alive, and stole gold, silver jewelry, and cash.
The mob also set fire to the house, damaging furniture, a washing machine, and a gas cylinder.
The riots, which occurred between 23 & 25 February 2020, began amid protests by Muslim women against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
The violence resulted in the deaths of 50 people, and to date, 760 cases have been filed in connection with the riots.
The court’s decision underscores the ongoing challenges in securing convictions in cases arising from the riots, amid concerns over evidence and witness reliability.
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