HC directs govt hospitals to videograph autopsies of people killed in Delhi violence

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Friday directed all government hospitals to videograph post-mortem of those killed during the communal violence in northeast Delhi last week.

A bench of justices Siddharth Mridul and I S Mehta asked authorities to collect and preserve DNA samples from all the bodies, and to not dispose of any unidentified body till March 11, the next date of hearing.

"All the government hospitals in Delhi under the aegis of both state and central governments are directed to videograph the post-mortem conducted on all bodies lying in their mortuaries," the bench said.

"The government hospitals are further directed to not dispose of any unidentified body till the next date of hearing," it said.

The bench issued the directions while hearing a habeas corpus plea by a man seeking the whereabouts of his brother-in-law who went missing during the riots over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act which left at least 44 people dead and over 200 injured.

Twenty-five-year-old Hamza went missing on February 26 evening after violence broke out in northeast Delhi.

During the hearing, the court was informed by the police that the body of the missing person, Hamza, was recovered from a drain in Bhagirathi Vihar at Gokulpuri on March 2 and his post-mortem would be conducted during the day at the RML Hospital.

The police had initially registered an FIR against unknown persons for the offence of kidnapping and later provisions of rioting, murder and destruction of evidence were also invoked.

Delhi government standing counsel (criminal) Rahul Mehra and advocate Chaitanya Gosain informed the court that once the post-mortem is conducted, the body will be forthwith released to the family members of deceased for performing last rites.

The court also appreciated the police officials of Gokulpuri area for the alacrity with which they acted in the matter.