New Delhi: The Delhi High Court Friday said it would hear from February 8 a batch of pleas concerning the 2020 north-east Delhi riots and the alleged hate speeches by leaders which led to the violence against the backdrop of protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
The pleas, which were earlier heard by a bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Jyoti Singh, have now been transferred to a bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Anup Jairam Bhambhani through
an administrative order of January 28.
We will start the hearing from Tuesday (February 8). Colate the issues which are over and which are still alive and give it us, the bench headed by Justice Mridul said.
The high court noted that the Supreme Court, in an order of December 17, 2021, has asked it to dispose of expeditiously, preferably within three months, a plea seeking registration of FIR against some politicians for their alleged hate speeches which purportedly led to the riots in north-east Delhi last year.
We are on a clock. Their (Supreme Court) wishes are commands for us. The intent is to dispose of the matter expeditiously, Justice Mridul responded when Additional Solicitor General Aman Lekhi said that the apex court has not put the high court to clock.
Justice Bhambhani said the court has to see which of the prayer in which of the petitions survive as it do not want
to flag a dead horse and will also see how a PIL is maintainable in a criminal matter.
Advocate Rajat Nair, representing Delhi Police, said in most of the cases investigation is complete and charge sheet has been filed and one or two cases have resulted in conviction of the accused.
He further said that trial is at advanced stages in some cases, pointing to the progress made in the last two years.
Delhi Police, in an affidavit filed on January 27, told the high court that the authorities acted promptly, vigilantly, and effectively without any fear or favour and in a professional manner to control law and order situation in the affected areas and to save life and property of people during the riots.
It has said that as and when the protestors tried to infringe the law and failed to obey directions of enforcement agencies, appropriate legal action was taken against the miscreants.
The police has said that due to the measures taken by it, the violence could be contained in a few days and was confined to a limited area and the investigation of these cases is being carried out professionally and scientifically under the monitoring of senior officers.
It has also informed the high court that out of 758 cases, charge sheets have been filed in 367, investigation pending in 384, the cancellation
report for closure of cases have been filed in courts in three and four have been quashed by the high court.