Delhi riots: HC asks trial court not to pass order on charges till Sept 23

The Delhi High Court on Thursday asked the trial court not to pass a final order on framing of charges till September 23 in connection with the case of alleged larger conspiracy behind the 2020 northeast Delhi riots.

The high court's order came while hearing a plea by riots accused Devangana Kalita seeking direction to the police to provide her certain videos and WhatsApp chats in two cases, including one under the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, related to the communal violence during the 2020 protests against the CAA and NRC.

The counsel for respondent (State) appears through video conferencing and submitted that he does not have the case file with him and seeks adjournment. The counsel for the petitioner opposes the prayer for adjournment on the grounds that arguments on framing of charges are ongoing and this petition pertains to supply of unrelied/relied documents under section 207 of CrPC.

Considering the submissions made, the matter be listed for arguments on September 23. Till then the trial court may continue with the arguments on charge but no final order be made, Justice Neena Bansal Krishna said while dictating the order.

During the hearing, Kalita's lawyer submitted that the petitioner was seeking the documents including, the videos and chats to prove her innocence.

The lawyer said the video, which was in her favour and would show her innocence, was not being provided to her by the prosecution.

However, the counsel for the Delhi Police contended that her petitions were not maintainable and said he would be able to address the court on the issue on the next date as today he was held up before the trial court which was hearing arguments on framing of charges in the same case.

Kalita's counsel had earlier submitted that the Delhi Police had commissioned certain persons to record the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) in February 2020 and the footage should be supplied to her before the trial court proceeds to hear the arguments on the framing of charges.

"Those videos will demonstrate that from February 22 to 26 (of 2020), we were protesting peacefully. The videos will demonstrate that.. I want to exercise my valuable right of discharge (in the criminal cases)," he said.

"The case against me (in one of the FIRs in the present matter) is murder. I am said to be part of a group of protestors under the Jafrabad flyover. Selective screen grabs have been taken... The videos exist. I say it is exculpatory. Provide me the videos," he had contended.

Besides the video footage, the lawyer has also sought the "entire WhatsApp chat" of a group, "selective extracts" of which were allegedly being used against the petitioner.

Kalita, Natasha Narwal, Jamia Coordination Committee members Safoora Zargar, former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain and several others have also been booked under various FIRs in relation to the riots in North-East Delhi, which had left 53 people dead and over 700 injured in February 2020.

Kalita, Sharjeel Imam, Khalid Saifi, Umar Khalid and others have been accused of being the "masterminds" behind the violence that took place at a time when the then US president Donald Trump and other dignitaries were in the national capital.