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A Delhi court has put a hold on a magistrate’s order directing the registration of a First Information Report (FIR) against a Delhi Police official accused of assaulting a man and forcing him to sing the national anthem during the 2020 communal riots in northeast Delhi.
Court Halts Magistrate’s Order
Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai was hearing a revision petition filed by Salender Tomar, who was the Station House Officer (SHO) of Jyoti Nagar police station at the time of the incident. The petition challenged the magistrate court’s order, which was passed on January 18, 2024.
In an order dated February 1, the court stated, “After going through the record and hearing submissions of the counsel, the court is of the view that the whole purpose of the present petition will be frustrated if the operation of the impugned order is not stayed by the court.”
Allegations and Previous Investigation
The magistrate had earlier labeled the incident as a “hate crime” and directed that an FIR be registered against the then SHO under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including:
- Section 295A (Deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings)
- Section 323 (Punishment for voluntarily causing hurt)
- Section 342 (Punishment for wrongful confinement)
- Section 506 (Punishment for criminal intimidation)
The court had also instructed the current SHO to assign a responsible officer, not below the rank of an inspector, to carry out a thorough investigation.
Plea Argues Against Duplicate FIR
Tomar’s revision petition argued that the magistrate’s order amounted to “double jeopardy” since an FIR had already been registered at Bhajanpura police station for the same incident.
The plea further stated, “The trial court grossly erred in ignoring the fact that while transferring the investigation of the case as mentioned above, vide order dated July 23, 2024, the Delhi High Court directed the CBI to investigate the case properly. As such, the trial court was not competent to order for registration of another FIR when the same allegations are already sub-judice before the high court.”
Viral Video and Victim’s Testimony
The original case was based on a complaint by Mohammed Wasim, who claimed to be one of five individuals allegedly assaulted and forced to sing the national anthem during the communal riots on February 24, 2020.
A video clip of the incident had gone viral on social media, showing five Muslim men being beaten up by policemen and forced to sing the national anthem and ‘Vande Mataram’, the national song.
Among the five victims, a 23-year-old man named Faizan later succumbed to his injuries. Following his death, his mother, Kismatun, moved the Delhi High Court in 2020, seeking a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into her son’s death.
CBI Takes Over Investigation
In July 2023, the Delhi High Court transferred the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for a more in-depth and independent investigation. With the matter already under CBI’s jurisdiction, Tomar’s defense argues that the magistrate’s order for an additional FIR contradicts the high court’s decision.
