Five accused acquitted in Karawal Nagar mosque arson case

A Delhi Karkardooma court has acquitted five persons accused of demolishing and setting fire to a mosque during the riots that occurred in the Karawal Nagar area of North-East Delhi in 2020. The court observed that the prosecution failed to establish the involvement of the accused due to serious contradictions in the statements of prosecution witnesses and errors made in proving the CCTV footage. Delivering the judgment on 31 October, Additional Sessions Judge Parveen Singh acquitted the accused of all charges, giving them the benefit of doubt.

In this case, Ankit, Saurabh Sharma, Rohit, Rahul Kumar, and Sachin were facing charges of rioting, being members of an unlawful assembly, causing damage to property, and setting fire to the mosque. The case originated from a complaint filed by Imran on 1 March, 2020. The complaint alleged that the Allah Wali Mosque, located in Gali Number 12 of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Colony in the Karawal Nagar area, was set on fire on 24 February. According to the complaint, an idol was placed on the slab near the entrance of the mosque and items kept on the four floors of the mosque were burnt. The police initially registered the offence under sections 147, 148, 149, and 436 of the Indian Penal Code.

During the investigation, based on the disclosure of another FIR related to the riots, the police had arrested three other accused, but the court had refused to proceed against them in December 2020. Subsequently, the scope of the investigation was expanded after CCTV footage from cameras installed by the Public Works Department was obtained. On 25 February, 2020, two police personnel patrolling the area identified these five individuals as members of the mob in the footage. Ali Ahmed, a resident living opposite the mosque, was also presented as a witness and was shown the footage.

However, the court noted that the prosecution's claim regarding the attack on 25 February was not supported by the independent witness Ali Ahmed. Ahmed testified as a witness that he had seen the mosque being demolished and set on fire at night between approximately 8 to 8.15 during the riots. He did not state that he remembered the date, but he did not support the prosecution's claim that a second attack took place around 11 am on 25 February. Ahmed also stated that he remained confined to his house for about four days after the incident. The court observed that Ahmed's statement does not align with the claim of the police witnesses that the mosque was attacked again on 25 February.

The judge observed clear contradictions between the statements of the police personnel and the resident. The court also found inconsistencies in the statements of ASI Junaid and ASI Mitilesh. The court noted that their previous statements in other riot cases suggest that after receiving a phone call between 10 to 11 am, they had gone to a school in Karawal Nagar and saved some people. If they were at the school during that time, they could not have been present near the mosque at the same time and could not have witnessed the vandalism. The judge further observed that if the certificates accompanying the CCTV footage presented by the prosecution do not meet legal requirements, they are not admissible in court.

Violent incidents occurred in the Karawal Nagar area during the riots in North-East Delhi in 2020, in which several instances of damage to and arson of mosques and other properties were recorded.