‘Extrajudicial reports’ are swaying opinion in Delhi riots case: Centre to HC
The Centre’s submission came in support of a petition filed by Dharmesh Sharma, a victim of the violence, who challenged the report of a committee constituted by Delhi Minorities Commission
Reports by private organisation or “extra judicial commission” on the February 2020 north-east Delhi riots have tried to put a biased and selective narrative to sway public opinion in favour of a particular community, the Union government has told the Delhi high court.
The Centre’s submission came in support of a petition filed by Dharmesh Sharma, a lawyer and victim of the communal violence, who had challenged the report of a fact-finding committee constituted by the Delhi Minorities Commission (DMC).
“….the tone and tenor of the reports have tried to put a biased and selective narrative to sway public opinion in favour of a particular community. Also, it cannot be denied that the conclusions of such reports can impact the just decisions of a case,” the Centre said in an affidavit filed in September 2022, a copy of which was made available on Tuesday.
The petitioner has sought quashing of a June 27, 2020, report published by the DMC committee. The plea also challenged several private reports, including those published by Human Rights Watch, the Citizens and Lawyers Initiative and Amnesty International India regarding the riots.
“...the unverified and, biased facts and conclusion mentioned in the said reports by authors who held high offices in government of India or have been former constitutional authorities, not only pollute the mind of the public but also influence fair administration of justice and impairs the right to justice guaranteed to the victims and the accused,” the Centre said in the affidavit filed before a bench of chief justice Satish Chandra Sharma and justice Subramonium Prasad.
The Centre has told the court that the fact finding committees have completely ignored the fact that the Delhi Police acted in a fair and impartial manner, adding that more than 750 FIRs were registered and three special teams of crime branch were constituted for impartial investigation in the case.
In February 2020, a clash between groups supporting and opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in north-east Delhi’s Jafrabad snowballed into a full blown riot with violence spreading to several localities in the district in which at least 53 people were killed.
The DMC fact-finding report said that the violence was “planned and targeted”. It said that there was “repeated incitement to violence” throughout the Delhi assembly polls campaign from December 2019 to February 2020. Other reports had said that the state failed to protect the Muslims, and later did not register complaints against the accused persons.
On Tuesday, the matter was transferred to a bench of justices Siddharth Mridul and Talwant Singh, since it is dealing with all matters related to the north-east Delhi riots.
Referring to the report by the DMC, the Centre said, “It is extremely crucial to note that the Committee was formed to give a report on the subject for which there is no power confirmed to the DMC under the Act. The said report is without jurisdiction, null and void.”
Raising questions on Zafar-ul-Islam, the former chairman of DMC, the Centre said that Khan is the same person, who with a malicious design disseminated fake news by thanking Kuwait for standing with Indian Muslims and further warning Hindus about facing an avalanche from the Muslim World.
“It is submitted that the said person has since been made an accused in a FIR under Section 124 and 153-A of the Indian Penal Code). Thus, it is evident that the very conduct/motive/mind set of Chairman of the DMC, i.e. Dr Zafarul-Islam Khanwas full of bias at the time when he exercised powers under section 10 of the DMC Act,” the Centre said.
It said that the DMC’s report had completely overlooked the fact that riots were part of a larger conspiracy and concerted attempts of creating disruption of the law-and-order situation in the NCT of Delhi through violent means.
“It also failed to observe that, efforts were made to disrupt communal harmony in the state and to perpetrate chaos in the society,” the Centre said, adding that from the findings of report, “it appears that a selective and biased approach was adopted by the Committee to mould the public opinion in favour of a particular community”.
Saying that the police acted promptly, the Centre said that action was taken on each and every complaint irrespective of the religion. It further contended that right from its inception, the committee was constituted to send a wrong message against the lawful actions of the Delhi Police.
Asserting that such reports have a potential to create a communally surcharge situation, the Centre said that the reports are made with an aim to sharply divide the religious communities hardening cleavages eliminating any possibility of consensus apart from disavowing all belief in the efficacy and worth of the existing system of law and portraying the political establishment inimical to a religious community.
The Centre said that there are several safeguards along with checks/balances in the criminal justice machinery, none exists for an independent body giving out biased and prejudiced reports.
“Thus, even if iota of credence is given out to such 3rd party reports, then the very essence of having a criminal justice system would fail; leading to failure of democracy and anarchy. As such for this reason also the present petition is liable to be allowed and a declaration ought to be made that no report of any private tribunal/fact finding body be cited as evidence before any court of law,” the affidavit read.
Petitioner Sharma has stated that the form and content of the reports are designed to deceive the judicial forums and the public at large. According to Sharma, the reports are intended to prejudice the general public and the world at large against the investigations and subsequent proceedings in accordance with the law.
The petitioner has urged the court to declare such reports by any statutory authorities, private organisations or “extra-judicial private tribunals” that are without any authority of law as void and ought not to be relied upon by any judicial forum including the courts where the matters in respect of Delhi riot cases are pending.