2019 anti-CAA violence in U.P.’s Rampur: Over ₹11 lakh recovery from 195 rioters ordered

The Meerut tribunal orders 195 individuals to pay ₹11,08,901 for damages from 2019 CAA violence in Rampur, with fines of ₹5,687 each.

The Uttar Pradesh Public and Private Property Damage Recovery Claims Tribunal in Meerut has directed for the recovery of ₹11,08,901 from 195 individuals involved in the 2019 violence against Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) in Rampur.

The violence, which erupted on December 21, 2019, caused extensive damage to public and private property in Rampur. (Sourced)

The three-member tribunal, chaired by Dr Ashok Kumar Singh, and comprising members Garima Singh and Alok Pandey, on Wednesday delivered the order after three years of hearing in the case titled ‘State Government vs Islam & Others’.

The violence, which erupted on December 21, 2019, caused extensive damage to public and private property in Rampur. According to the tribunal’s records, a mob of 400–500 people, led by one Islam and others, gathered after raising inflammatory slogans during a protest against the CAA. The crowd marched from Hamid Inter College towards Eidgah Shahbad Gate, breaking barricades, and attacking security forces with gunfire and stones at Hathi Khana Crossing.

According to the tribunal order accessed by HT, the damages included a government jeep, wireless equipment, multicoloured lights, sirens, motorcycles, fibre batons, helmets, body protectors, tear gas cans, barricading materials, iron barriers and folding barriers.

Additionally, five private motorcycles, a scooter, and a mobile phone were also destroyed, with the total loss assessed at ₹11,08,901.

In 2022, Rampur police filed a claim with the Meerut tribunal, seeking recovery from 197 accused. After issuing notices and conducting hearings, the tribunal found 195 of the accused guilty, ordering them to pay a fine of ₹5,687 each.

The Rampur DM has been tasked with recovering the total amount within 30 days as per Section 23 of the Public and Private Property Damage Recovery Act, 2020. The recovered sum will be deposited in the government treasury.

If the guilty fail to pay the fine within the stipulated period, the DM will treat the amount as arrears of land revenue with an additional 6% simple interest and recovery expenses applied until the fine is settled, the order mentioned.