A citizens’ committee, including former Supreme Court and High Court judges, has been constituted to inquire into the February communal riots in Delhi.
The committee will inquire into the role of the State machinery in restoring order and the part played by certain sections of the media to fan the flames through fake news before and after the violence that broke out following protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
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The ‘Citizens Committee on the Delhi Riots of February 2020 : Context, Events and Aftermath’ will include former Supreme Court judge, Justice Madan Lokur; former Delhi High Court Chief Justice and Law Commission of India chairperson Justice A.P. Shah; Justice R.S. Sodhi, former judge of the Delhi High Court; Justice Anjana Prakash, former judge of the Patna High Court; G.K. Pillai, former Union Home Secretary; and Meeran Chadha Borwankar, former Director-General, Bureau of Police Research and Development, Government of India. The committee will file its report in three months.
It was formed on the invitation of the Constitutional Conduct Group, comprising distinguished former civil servants who want an impartial probe into the events which led to the communal riots in the National Capital.
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“Considering the horrific nature of the riots in North-East Delhi in February 2020, the scale of violence, the loss of lives and the resulting communal divide between communities, we felt that an expert body should carry out a thorough examination of what transpired before, during and after the riots. This has become even more necessary as the investigation by the Delhi Police has evoked extensive critical commentary in recent times,” a statement from the Group on Sunday said.
The work of the committee would create a “contemporary record of acts of omission and commission around the riots, and their aftermath.”
All persons who engage with the committee would be accorded dignity and respect. Their communication would be kept confidential. Queries can be addressed to ccgenquiry10@gmail.com.
