A Delhi court has convicted six men for rioting and arson during the February 2020 riots, holding the prosecution proved the case “beyond reasonable doubt.” Sentencing will be decided on September 19.
New Delhi: A Delhi court has convicted six men in a case linked to the February 2020 riots, holding that the prosecution had successfully proved the charges against them “beyond reasonable doubt.”
The verdict was passed by Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh, who found that the accused had played an active role in rioting, arson, and destruction of property.
The court observed that the evidence clearly established that on February 25, 2020, between 11 pm and 11:30 pm, the accused were part of a violent mob of around 100 to 150 people.
This mob forced its way into a shop, broke open the entrance, looted and damaged the goods inside, and then set the shop on fire.
The court noted,
“This assembly was armed with lathis and dandas, etc., which, if used by the mob, could have been deadly weapons, and thus, this assembly had committed the offence of rioting while being armed with deadly weapons.”
The complainant, who owned the shop, told the court that he had suffered a loss of about ₹1.5 lakh due to the incident.
According to the prosecution, the six men convicted in the case are Hariom Gupta, Basant Kumar Mishra, Gorakh Nath, Rohit Gautam, Kapil Pandey and Bheem Sain. They were identified as members of the mob that committed the crime.
The order, dated September 11, further highlighted that the defence team, despite cross-examining witnesses, could not discredit the testimony of a key eyewitness.
The judge noted,
“Despite the cross-examination, the defence was unable to shake the testimony of a crucial eyewitness, namely, head constable Sandeep.”
The court explained that the main aim of the mob was unlawful and destructive in nature.
“The common object of the unlawful assembly was to carry out riots, arson and mischief,”
the order stated.
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It further added,
“He said the assembly unlawful assembly committed an act of riot when this it broke open the shop and set its articles on fire.”
After reviewing the evidence, the court ruled that the case falls under Section 435 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which deals with mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage to property.
The judge, however, acquitted the accused of charges under Section 436 of IPC, which relates to destroying houses by fire or explosives.
The court concluded,
“The offence was under the ambit of IPC Section 435.”
Finally, the court declared,
“The order, therefore, acquitted them of the offence of causing mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to destroy a house under Section 436 of IPC but convicted them for the rest of the crimes.”
The court will now hear arguments on the sentencing of the six convicted men on September 19.
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