Saifi moves HC against attempt to murder charge

NEW DELHI: ‘United Against Hate’ founder Khalid Saifi on Thursday approached the Delhi High Court against invocation of the charge of attempt to murder against him in a case related to the communal riots that erupted in parts of the city in February 2020.

The senior lawyer appearing for Saifi argued that once the offences under the Arms Act were dropped against him, and neither any weapon was recovered nor the alleged gunshot was attributed to him, the charge under section 307 IPC can’t be framed. Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri, however, orally said that in view of the statements of witnesses about Saifi’s presence at the place of the incident and “provocation”, he was not inclined to entertain the plea. “I will pass the order,” the judge said, adding that it will be open to cross-examine presence. Communal clashes erupted in northeast Delhi on February 24, 2020, following violence between citizenship law supporters and protesters, resulting in 53 deaths and around 700 injuries.

On February 26, a mob in Masjidwali Gali, Khureji Khas, ignored police orders, threw stones, assaulted officers, and fired at head constable Yograj, per the Jagat Puri police FIR. The prosecution alleges Saifi and Ishrat Jahan instigated the unlawful assembly. In January, the trial court ordered charges, including attempt to murder and rioting, against Saifi, Ishrat Jahan, and 11 others. Charges under criminal conspiracy, abetment, and the Arms Act were dropped. Saifi’s senior lawyer argued in the high court that the revision petition focuses solely on section 307, asserting that Saifi, a victim of custodial torture, had no evidence linking him to the unlawful assembly or violence. The counsel emphasised that since no injuries resulted from the firing and the Arms Act charges were dropped, the credibility of the prosecution’s case is questionable.