Delhi Court Moves Forward in North East Delhi Riots Case
Delhi’s Karkardooma court has directed the prosecution to begin arguments on charges in the North East Delhi riots case, confirming that the investigation against the charge-sheeted accused is complete.
Key Details
Special judge Sameer Bajpai noted that the prosecution’s written submissions indicated the investigation is finished. This means the investigation is complete for all those charge-sheeted so far, not just the applicants.
Accused individuals, including Athar Khan, Asif Iqbal Tanha, Meeran Haider, Natasha Narwal, and Devangana Kalita, had requested the court to ask the prosecuting agency to confirm if the investigation is complete, allowing proceedings on charge arguments to begin.
Timeline of Events
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| March 6, 2020 | FIR registered |
| April 19, 2020 | UAPA provisions invoked |
| September 16, 2020 | Main charge sheet filed |
| October 22, 2020 | First supplementary charge sheet filed |
| February 23, 2021 | Second supplementary charge sheet filed |
| March 2, 2022 | Third supplementary charge sheet filed |
| June 7, 2023 | Fourth supplementary charge sheet filed |
Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Amit Prasad argued that sufficient material was already available for the court to proceed with charge arguments and that the applicants were unnecessarily delaying the matter by filing these applications.
The court referred to a Delhi High Court judgement in State Vs. Mohd Qasim and Others, which clarified that after a charge sheet is filed but before charge arguments are heard, the court may ask the prosecution whether the charge sheet has been fully submitted and whether the case is ready for hearing.
In light of the High Court’s ruling and the specific facts of this case, the court directed the prosecution to confirm if the charge sheet has been fully submitted and if the case is ready for hearing arguments on charges.
Doubts Revealed
Delhi Court -: A court is a place where legal cases are heard and decided. Delhi is the capital city of India, and it has many courts to handle different types of cases.
North East Delhi Riots -: These were violent clashes that happened in North East Delhi in February 2020. People from different communities fought, and it caused a lot of damage and loss of lives.
Karkardooma court -: This is a specific court located in the Karkardooma area of Delhi. It handles various legal cases, including criminal cases.
Prosecution -: The prosecution is the legal team that tries to prove that someone accused of a crime is guilty. They present evidence and arguments in court.
Charge-sheeted accused -: These are people who have been formally accused of a crime and have had a charge sheet filed against them. A charge sheet is a document that lists the charges and evidence against them.
Special judge -: A special judge is a judge who is assigned to handle specific types of cases. In this case, Sameer Bajpai is the special judge handling the North East Delhi riots case.
Delhi High Court judgement -: The Delhi High Court is a higher court in Delhi that makes important legal decisions. A judgement from this court can be used as a reference in other cases to support decisions.
