HC gives last chance for replies in Delhi riots petitions

new delhi: "Please raise your demand for replies now. This matter has to start someday," the Delhi High Court on Tuesday observed while adjourning the hearing in a batch of petitions seeking an independent probe into the north-east Delhi riots in February to look into allegations of police complicity and incitement of violence by

BJP leaders.

A bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan said that all parties in the matter must take the issue of providing replies to each other seriously as the "matter had to start someday". This came in the backdrop of Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta's submission that a common reply had been filed in all the petitions. However, one petitioner, Jamiat Ulama submitted that he had not received the reply.

The court took serious note of the issue and said that no more time will be given to seek replies as it posted the matter for hearing on July 27.

Besides, Jamiat Ulama submitted that it would like to place on record the recent fact-finding report released by the Delhi Minorities Commission, which held senior BJP leaders like Kapil Mishra for inciting riots in Delhi while campaigning for the Assembly elections earlier this year.

However, S-G Mehta said petitioners should stick to materials already put on record. Jamiat Ulama also submitted that the CCTV footage from riot-hit areas had not been preserved by the Delhi Police as directed by the court in its earlier hearings and nor had the police filed replies in this regard. This submission was denied by Mehta.

The Delhi Police had earlier in the case filed an affidavit, concluding that as per information collected so far in the riots cases, no evidence was found BJP leaders Kapil Mishra, Anurag Thakur and Parvesh Verma.