Over 50 people died and around 200 were injured during the February 2020 Delhi riots (File)
A furious Delhi court on Friday slammed police in the national capital over a "shoddy", "callous" and "indolent" investigation into the violence that rocked the city in February last year.
The Karkardooma court's strong criticism of Delhi Police, which reports to the Union Home Ministry, came as it acquitted three people, including Shah Alam, who is AAP Councillor Tahir Hussain's brother, who had been charged with looting and vandalising a shop in Chand Bagh.
The case against Shah Alam and the others - Rashid Saifi and Shadab - was filed after the Chand Bagh shop owner - Harpreet Singh Anand - filed a complaint after his shop was burned down.
Violence broke out in the northeastern parts of Delhi in February 2020 after tension between supporters of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act and those protesting against it.
Over 50 people died and around 200 were injured in the violence that followed.
Here are the top five quotes from the court on this matter:
- When history will look back at the worst communal riots in Delhi since partition, failure of Delhi Police to conduct a proper investigation will torment sentinels of democracy.
- The case appears to have been solved merely by filing this charge sheet... without any effort being made to trace eyewitnesses, real accused persons and technical evidence
- The sort of investigation.. and the lack of supervision by superior officers... clearly depicts the investigating agency merely tried to pull wool over the court's eyes and nothing else.
- This case was a colossal wastage of taxpayers' hard-earned money... without (any) intent of investigating the matter.
- This court cannot permit such cases to meander mindlessly through the corridors of the judicial system, sweeping away court's precious time when it is an open-and-shut case.
With input from PTI