On Tuesday, a Delhi court ordered rigorous imprisonment of seven years in jail to nine men accused in a case relating to the 2020 anti-Hindu Delhi riots. The nine persons sentenced by the court have been identified as Mohammad Shahnawaz, Mohammad Shoaib, Shahrukh, Rashid, Azad, Ashraf Ali, Parvez, Md Faisal and Rashid, alias Monu. They have been charged for rioting and being part of unlawful assembly in an FIR registered at Gokulpuri police station.
“Communal riots are treated as one of the most violent forms of public disorder that afflict society. It leads to not only loss of life and property but also causes great damage to the social fabric. During communal riots, innocent ordinary people get caught in circumstances beyond their control, which leads to the violation of human rights as well,” the court led by the additional sessions judge Pulastya Pramachala said.
The court also noted that the nine men tried to create communal disturbance in the area and instilled a sense of insecurity among people. The said individuals were convicted under IPC Sections 147 (rioting),148 (rioting, armed with a deadly weapon), 380 (theft in dwelling house), 427 (mischief causing damage of Ps 50 or upwards), 436 (mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to destroy a house, etc) 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of the offence committed in prosecution of common object) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant).
“Thus, the impact of the crime committed by the convicts, in this case, is not limited to loss caused to the complainant only. Rather their acts left a deep scar over the social fabric, economy and stability of our nation. The alleged acts instilled a sense of insecurity among the people while jeopardising the communal harmony in the society,” the court added.
As per the reports, the convicts have been awarded simple imprisonment of one year for an offence under Sections 148 and 427, simple imprisonment of three years for violating Section 380, rigorous imprisonment of seven years for the offence they have committed under Section 436 and simple imprisonment of six months for offences under Section 188 of IPC.
Additionally, a fine of Rs. 21,000 has also been imposed on each of the convicts. “Of the total amount, Rs 1.5 1akh is directed to be disbursed to the complainant as compensation”, the court said adding that it is not an easy task for a victim to substantiate the loss through documents in all the cases, especially if everything was burnt.
“At the same time, any claim of loss may not be a true account of loss. In such cases, a notional amount is fixed by the court, while keeping in view the nature of the incident,” the court ruled.
On February 29, 2020, an FIR was registered at Gokalpuri police station. The FIR was filed based on the complaint written by one Rekha Sharma who revealed that on February 24, 2020, an incident of stone pelting took place at her house at Chaman Park, Shiv Vihar Tiraha Road, Delhi. She said that the stones were pelted at about 1 to 2 pm.
“There was a mob in the gali, which was trying to break open the gate of her house. I made a call to her husband, who was on his duty. Her husband returned home and took her away to a safe place and locked the gate,” the complainant said.
The complainant further alleged that during the night intervening between February 24-25, 2020, the mob broke open the rear gate of her aforesaid house and robbed the goods lying therein. They also vandalized the property and set the upper floor of her house on fire.
The police identified the accused during the investigation. They checked the CCTV footage, and viral videos posted on social media and also relied on public witnesses to identify the accused.
