Delhi riots: Court frames charges against man who pointed gun at policeman

Images of Shahrukh Pathan pointing a gun at Delhi police’s head constable Deepak Dahiya were widely circulated on social media. He was arrested on March 3, 2020 and is currently lodged in Tihar jail

A Delhi court has framed charges against Shahrukh Pathan, the man who had pointed a gun at a policeman during the deadly riots that rocked northeast Delhi last year, saying that it was not an ordinary case of an individual or a group committing an unlawful act.

A photo taken on February 26, 2020 shows firefighters standing near a fire rescue vehicle as they douse burnt-out tyre market following deadly clashes in New Delhi. (AFP/File)

Images of Pathan pointing a gun at Delhi police’s head constable Deepak Dahiya were widely circulated on social media. He was arrested on March 3, 2020 and is currently lodged in Tihar jail.

On Tuesday, additional sessions judge Amitabh Rawat charged Pathan with attempt to murder, assault, and obstructing public servants in the discharge of duty under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Arms Act.

The court also observed that it hadn’t witnessed riots of this nature since the deadly Sikh riots in 1984.

The court noted that there was a prohibitory order under section 144 of the CrPC issued by the DCP (Northeast) and there was a violation also of section 188 of the IPC.

The court also framed charges against Shamim and Abdul Shehzad, both co-accused, for being part of the rioters who were led by Pathan, saying they were rioting at the time of the gun-pointing incident.

The Delhi court noted that both the accused have been identified through CCTV footage and by witnesses.

The court also charged another accused, Ishtiyak Malik, saying that even if there was no footage showing him rioting, he cannot be absolved of the crime.

The judge said that he was in constant touch with Pathan, as evident from his call records, adding that his mobile phone location was the same as that of Pathan.

“This factum of the location or the presence of the accused Ishtiyak Malik @ Guddu at the place of riots where weapons are being brandished, and firing done at head constable Deepak Dahiya and others by accused Shahrukh Pathan with whom he was in continuous touch and shared the location of riots, is enough for framing charges against him, “ the court said.

Additionally, the bench charged one Kaleem Ahmed for harbouring Pathan in Kairana, Uttar Pradesh, after he escaped following the incident during the riots.

“On the basis of material on record, I am of the opinion that there are sufficient grounds for presuming that the accused persons namely Shahruk Pathan, Shamim, Abdul Shehzad and Ishtiyaq Malik @ Guddu have committed offences under sections 147, 148, 186, 188, 353, 307 of the IPC... section 149 of the IPC, and accused Shahrukh Pathan has also additionally committed offence under sections 25 and 27 of the Arms Act, while accused Kaleem Ahmed committed offence under section 216 of the IPC,” the court said.

Pathan, through his counsel, had earlier argued that he only intended to scare the policeman and not kill him.

Communal clashes broke out in northeast Delhi in February 2020 after a tense standoff between supporters of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and its critics went out of control, leaving at least 53 people dead and over 700 injured.