Delhi violence: Court dismisses bail plea of accused Asif lqbal Tanha

Additional Session Judge Amitabh Rawat of a Delhi court dismissed the bail plea of Asif lqbal Tanha, one of the key accused in northeast Delhi violence case. According to the prosecution, there was a conspiracy hatched to cause communal riots in Delhi.

New Delhi: A Delhi court has dismissed the bail plea of Asif lqbal Tanha, one of the accused in connection with the case related to the northeast Delhi violence, observing that the accusation against the accused are prima facie true.

Additional Session Judge Amitabh Rawat dismissed the bail plea of Tanha after considering the statement of witnesses regarding the role of the accused in the violence, which took place from February 24 to 26 and led to the death of at least 53 people.

"Moreover, at this stage of investigation and upon the consideration of the bail application, the statements under Section 161 and 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) have to be taken as such. There merits or credibility can't be gone into at the present stage," the court said in its order on Wednesday.

The court also noted the objection raised by special public prosecutor Amit Prasad opposing the bail plea and noted that the statements clearly point out the role of Tanha and other co-accused and various actions taken by them in pursuance of the conspiracy behind the violence.

"As has been correctly stated by the Special Public Prosecutor, there are statements of protected witnesses under Section 161 CrPC and 164 CrPC. The said statements do reflect the role of many accused persons including accused Asif lqbal Tanha regarding the protest sites and how everything was being planned," the order said.

Tanha was part of the conspiracy for doing 'chakka-jam' leading to the riots, the court noted.

"Considering the statement of such witnesses regarding the role of the accused Asif Iqbal Tanha and other accused persons whose conduct is also highlighted by various statements, I have no hesitation to hold that there are reasonable ground for believing that accusation against accused are prima facie true and thus, the embargo under Section 43D (5) of the UA (P) Act, 1967 will apply," the order said.

"Since the present case is of a conspiracy resulting in riots, there are various individuals, organisations, and groups which are inter-linked and from the statements working in tandem. Thus, the statements or acts by the other co-conspirators in furtherance of a common object of the conspiracy will be admissible against the present accused and the statements and evidence will have to be read in entirety since it is a case of conspiracy," it added.

Moreover, the court held that the assertion that the accused himself physically and directly did not resort to violence as understood in common parlance would not be germane in the context of various acts committed by different individuals including Tanha in the conspiracy of riots.

According to the prosecution, there was a conspiracy hatched to cause communal riots in Delhi.

"The said conspiracy was multi-layered and deep-rooted. Various groups and organizations came together and forged linkages to create communal tension, do chakka-jam at preplanned sites. Protest against the CAA was organized at various sites in Delhi with the objective of causing riots which took place mainly in the northeast Delhi," the prosecution has said.

It said that firearms, petrol bombs, stones, slingshots and other dangerous articles were gathered at various places in northeast Delhi for achieving the said objective.

On March 6, the Crime Branch of the Delhi Police had registered an FIR under several sections of the India Penal Code (IPC) regarding a criminal conspiracy to cause communal riots in Delhi from February 23 to 26.

The investigation was transferred to the Special Cell on the same day. On April 19, the investigating agency invoked Sections 13, 16, 17, and 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 in the case.

Notably, a trial court had on August 13 granted more time to Delhi Police to probe the matter and extended the time for completing the investigation till September 17.

Beside Tanha, other accused in the case are Khalid, Ishrat Jahan, Tahir Hussain, Meeran Haider, Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita, and Shafa ur Rehman are among others arrested in the case and they are currently undergoing judicial custody.

ANI report