[Delhi Riots] 16 months in jail not trivial, accused seeking bail not hardened criminals: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on Thursday remarked that a period of sixteen months in jail was not “trivial” and that the accused persons seeking bail in a Delhi Riots case were not “hardened criminals” (Mohd Arif v. State)..Justice Subramonium Prasad orally remarked, “Sixteen months jail is not trivial. It can’t be taken as something very trivial. They are not hardened criminals. Some of them are tailors…They are persons who earn a living doing different things.” The Court further pointed out that in such a case, “propensity to commit the crime again” was to be seen..Today, the prosecution led by Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju contested the bail pleas of 11 accused persons in the case.Raju responded to the Court’s remarks,“A tailor can be a terrorist. He can be a murderer...I am not saying all tailors are guilty. I have not arrested all tailors. A particular tailor who had committed a particular act…”“You earn sympathy when you have behaved like a tailor…Or else that sympathy has to vanish otherwise it won’t be safe,” the ASG submitted.Raju went on to say that there has to be sympathy for the family of head constable Rattan Lal, who died in this case.“Tailor was used by these persons, who held the meetings. Persons who are saying it is a non-violent protest. They are the real culprits. They are the persons who are influential...They are the people who can write….They say we are left-leaning… Government is against us.. These are persons who are most anti-national persons. They say we are for the Kashmir cause…” he stated..During the hearing, Raju relied on several judgments to contend that bail ought not be granted in the present case, given the facts and circumstances under which the purported acts had been carried out by the accused.“Looking at the behaviour before occurrence. Switching off CCTV; Collection of arms; Armed with deadly weapons that could cause death,” he said.On the commission of offence under Section 149 (unlawful assembly) of the Indian Penal Code, the senior lawyer stressed that there were “lathis, dandas, swords and CCTVs were destroyed” and said it “was not a simple protest as sought to be made out.”In summation, Raju said,“It not only affects law and order but security of persons. If person who went on a rampage, and assaulted policemen doing their duty…. and that assault did not happen in the spur of the moment...It was pre-planned assault, there is conspiracy to assault with deadly weapons….taken law in their own hands and mercilessly assaulted police persons.”He also submitted that women and children were “put in the front” so that the police didn’t taken any action.“This was meticulously planned. It was planned in the earlier meetings. Police could have taken action,… but children and women at the forefront - that’s how meticulously planned,” submitted Raju..The Court, however, orally remarked that from the footage placed on record, it was seen that the the mob that had resorted to stone-pelting did not show the presence of women and children.“Play full video.…when people are coming from Karawal Nagar and go to the place where policemen were attacked. This is where people are running. Hold here (courts asks to pause the video). Most of the persons accused in the case are not a part of protest mob where women and children at the front,” the Court said.The Court also remarked that primarily, most of the accused in this case were not a part of the march from Karwal Nagar..Special Public Prosecutor Amit Prasad pointed out that on the relevant day, there was no march of people per se. “This was the protest site,” he said referring to the yellow and blue tarpaulins seen in the video.The ASG, on the other hand, referred to a frame in the video and said, “Look at this boy. He is also throwing something at the police. It is not as if they are not doing anything there.”With the prosecution concluding its submissions, the defence's rebuttal will begin on Friday..[Delhi Riots] Frontal attack on police who were 'hopelessly outnumbered', argues prosecution opposing bails of accused in riots case