Residents hosted Tablighi Jamaat attendees who violated prohibitory order: Police to HC
New Delhi: The Delhi Police on Tuesday opposed before the high court here pleas for quashing FIRs against residents of Chandni Mahal area for hosting foreign attendees of Tablighi Jamaat congregation in March 2020, saying they gave shelter to the attendees who travelled from the Nizamuddin Markaz in violation of the prohibitory orders imposed on movement to contain the spread of COVID-19.
In a status report filed in response to the petitions by the accused to dismiss the criminal proceedings, the city police said that the members of the Jamaat were residing in Nizamuddin Markaz from March 26, 2020 to March 31, 2020 but were found to be present in Chandni Mahal area in Central Delhi on April 1, 2020.
The investigating agency said that the accused in the present set of FIRs admitted and accommodated the assembly of the Jamaat on their premises after the prohibitory order on movement was issued by authorities.
The counsel for the petitioners, lawyer Ashima Mandla, told Justice Mukta Gupta that the factual stand of the investigating agency was incongruous.
The judge granted time to the petitioners to file a rejoinder to the police's status report and listed the case for further hearing on February 28.
File rejoinder and written submissions on legal and factual aspects of each case. If facts are disputed, it may be a matter of trial, the court stated.
In the present set of matters, while some pleas pertain to quashing of FIRs by individuals who had provided refuge to the foreigners in their homes, others concern persons like managing committee members or caretakers of different mosques who provided housing facilities in the mosques under the jurisdiction of Chandni Mahal police station.
The FIRs were registered for alleged commission of offences under Section 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), Section 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection) and other offences under the Indian
Penal Code.