Arguing earlier than a Delhi courtroom within the bigger conspiracy case linked to the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots, former Aam Aadmi Social gathering (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain identified on Friday that the WhatsApp chats relied upon by the prosecuting company don’t instruct anybody to choose up weapons or bask in violence.
Solely ‘chakka jam’ and peaceable protests had been talked about within the chats relied upon by the Delhi Police Particular Cell which is investigating the case, the counsel mentioned. The courtroom of Further Classes Choose Sameer Bajpai was listening to arguments on framing prices within the case pertaining to the February 2020 riots.
“Nowhere within the WhatsApp messages is it talked about that we must always decide up weapons towards the Authorities of India or its companies,” argued Advocate Rajiv Mohan, representing Hussain.
Hussain and 17 others within the case have been charged below stringent provisions of the UAPA. Of the 18 accused arrested on this case, six are on bail and 12 are nonetheless in judicial custody.
Mohan, who was accompanied by advocates Tara Narula, Rishabh Bhati, Shivangi Sharma, Sonal Sarda and Ilma Khan, mentioned, “Chakka jaam will not be a terrorist act…is assembly individuals and protesting additionally a terrorist exercise as per the company?,” he added.
The chats are a part of the proof relied upon by the Particular Cell together with CCTV footage and statements of witnesses. As per the prosecution, the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots had been the results of a months-long “deep-rooted” conspiracy allegedly hatched after the Citizenship Modification Invoice received a nod from the Union Cupboard in December 2019.
“What’s the frequent conspiracy on this case? First, the company has to make that clear. Which offence is being dedicated by the accused individuals?,” Mohan sought to know.
“For the person act finished by the individual attending the protest, the police have already registered the FIR and a chargesheet… Till and until any aspect exhibits that any armed riot or insurgency was promoted, the UAPA (Illegal Actions Prevention Act) can’t be invoked,” he mentioned.
“The protests had been confined towards the Citizenship Modification Invoice. The best way a group reacts to a Invoice is a unique challenge… It could actually’t be held that it’s a protest towards the Authorities of India,” Mohan argued.
As per the Particular Cell, the “conspiracy” on this case was the alleged creation of 23 protest websites that operated “24×7 in Muslim majority areas” near mosques and fundamental roads. The prosecution additionally alleged that earlier than the riots of February 2020, a “duplicate” of the riots passed off in December 2019 with “comparable characters and modus operandi”. Over 700 individuals had been injured and 50 succumbed to loss of life through the 2020 riots.
