Uttar Nagar murder: SDM cancels birth certificate of accused showing minor, cites discrepancies

New Delhi:A sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) has cancelled the birth registration document of one of the accused in the March 2026 murder of Tarun Butolia, which had triggered days of communal tension in west Delhi, according to an administrative order issued on Thursday

New Delhi:A sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) has cancelled the birth registration document of one of the accused in the March 2026 murder of Tarun Butolia, which had triggered days of communal tension in west Delhi, according to an administrative order issued on Thursday.

The development relates to the March 4 murder of Butolia. Police said the dispute began when a coloured water balloon thrown while a minor from Butolia’s family was playing Holi landed on a woman and splashed water on her clothes. (Representative photo)

The cancellation is significant as the document in question had recorded the accused, identified as Faizaan, as a minor. Officials said the move means the birth certificate can no longer be relied upon to establish that he was a minor.

The Vikaspuri SDM wrote to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to cancel the certificate after a verification process by the revenue department found the delayed birth registration order to be invalid. HT has accessed the order.

“The accused had two birth certificates and two Aadhaar cards. One of the birth certificates showed him to be a minor. Following due verification, MCD was informed that the birth certificate showing the accused as a minor was not authentic. MCD was requested to do the needful,” a west district official said.

The communication, signed by the Vikaspuri SDM, was sent to the Registrar (Birth and Death) of MCD’s West Zone. The administrative inquiry examined the delayed birth registration and concluded that the order under which the certificate had been issued was invalid, officials said.

The development relates to the March 4 murder of Butolia. Police said the dispute began when a coloured water balloon thrown while a minor from Butolia’s family was playing Holi landed on a woman and splashed water on her clothes.

According to a Delhi Police chargesheet filed in May, the dispute escalated after caste-based abuse and ended in Butolia’s murder. Police named 18 people as accused in the case and also booked them for allegedly being part of an unlawful assembly.