A Delhi court has acquitted four persons in a case pertaining to the riots that had erupted in the national capital in February 2020, reported PTI on Saturday.
The four men - Dinesh Yadav, Sahil, Sandeep and Tinku- were accused of rioting, vandalism, arson and theft at shops in the city’s Bhagirathi Vihar area on February 25, 2020.
Clashes had broken out between supporters of the Citizenship Amendment Act and those opposing it between February 23 and February 26, 2020, in North East Delhi. At least 53 people, mostly Muslims, were killed in the violence.
Additional Sessions Judge Pulastya Pramachala passed the order while noting that the accused were entitled to the benefit of doubt, reported the news agency. “I find that charges levelled against the accused persons, in this case, are not proved beyond doubt,” the court said.
The judge noted that although the formation of unlawful assembly, rioting and vandalism in two shops was well established, the shops were not set ablaze. The court also said that seven prosecution witnesses could not identify any rioters by appearance or name as they did not see their faces.
The judge also said that testimonies of two police officers were “not reliable” in establishing that the accused persons took part in a riotous mob, PTI reported.
“Prosecution did not prove any record of such vital information being given by these two witnesses in the police station, though ideally it should have been at least recorded in writing,” the court said. “Accused persons were arrested much later in time and statements of these witnesses were also recorded after a long delay.”
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