2020 Delhi riots: Court stays order for FIR against SHO
A sessions court in Delhi has stayed a magistrate court’s order directing the registration of an FIR against a station house officer (SHO) and other police personnel for their alleged involvement in a hate crime during the 2020 Delhi riots.
The SHO had moved the Karkardooma sessions court, challenging the magistrate’s order issued on January 18.
Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Sameer Bajpai, while staying the order, observed that prior sanction for the registration of an FIR had not been obtained, which was required as the accused was an SHO.
“The entire purpose of the present petition will be frustrated, if the operation of the impugned order is not stayed,” the judge noted in his order on February 1.
Advocate Sanjay Gupta, appearing for SHO Tomar, argued that the magistrate’s order directing the registration of an FIR under Sections 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 342 (wrongful confinement) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC was legally flawed.
He contended that this amounted to “double jeopardy” since another FIR concerning the same incident was already registered at the Bhajanpura police station where one of the respondents in the present case was a witness.
Gupta further pointed out that a second FIR for the same incident was not permissible under the law.
The case stems from a complaint filed by Mohd Waseem, who alleged that while trying to escape from a riot-affected area, he fell down and was subsequently beaten and verbally abused by police personnel. According to Waseem, the then SHO of the Jyoti Nagar police station directed officers to throw him where other detainees were lying on the ground.
Waseem also alleged that four police officers forced them to chant nationalist slogans, including Jai Shri Ram and Vande Mataram, while beating them. One of the victims, Faizan, later succumbed to his injuries.
The Delhi High Court had previously intervened in a similar case. On July 23, 2024, it directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the forced singing of the national anthem and the custodial violence that led to Faizan’s death. The case was initiated on a petition filed by Kismatun, Faizan’s mother.
Advocate Gupta argued that since the High Court had already ordered a CBI investigation, the trial court had no jurisdiction to direct the registration of another FIR over the same allegations.
Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Udhbhav Kumar Jain had ruled on January 18 that the accused officers could not claim protection under the guise of acting in their official capacity. He had directed the registration of an FIR against then SHO Tomar and other police personnel.
