The Delhi High Court has granted bail to three men accused of murdering a person and injuring another while being part of an unlawful assembly that indulged in stone pelting during the communal violence in northeast Delhi in 2020.
Justice Mukta Gupta directed the three accused, Shabir Ali, Mehtab and Rais Ahmed, to be released on bail on the furnishing of a personal bond of ₹25,000 each, along with a surety of the like amount.
The High Court noted that even though the trio were present as members of a mob at gali no.1, Akhadewali gali , after 11 p.m., they were not part of the mob at gali no.1 Brahmpuri at around 10.30 p.m., which indulged in pelting stones, causing injuries to one Nitin Kumar and the death of his father Vinod Kumar.
“The subsequent forming of an unlawful assembly at a different place, i.e., gali no.1 Akhadewali gali, will not implicate the petitioners as members of an unlawful assembly for causing the offences at gali no.1 Brahmpuri gali ,” the High Court said.
“There is no prima facie material available with the prosecution from the statements of the eye witnesses or the video clips of the mobile phones to show that the petitioners were part of the mob which caused unlawful activity at gali no.1, Brahmpuri, resulting in injuries to Nitin Kumar and the death of his father,” Justice Gupta said.
No common objective
“A subsequent collection of the mob at another place may be for a different object and the petitioners may be prosecuted for the same and not for the common object of pelting stones and causing injuries to Nitin and his father,” the judge added.
Mr. Ali’s counsel argued that even according to the prosecution, he was seen for just two seconds coming out of the gali wearing a vest, and was admittedly not armed with any weapon, and even the face of the person in a vest was not clear to be that of him.
The counsel for the other two accused also said that merely because they, along with other people of Akhadewali gali , had gathered at the corner of the lane on the night of February 24, 2020 in view of the information pouring in at that time, it could not be attributed as the common object of the mob, which committed the murder of Vinod Kumar and injured Nitin Kumar in Brahmpuri.
The prosecutor had contended that during the riots in Delhi’s northeast district on the intervening night of February 23-24, 2020 mobs had gathered at various points, and each one was acting in support and tandem with the others.
