New Delhi: A Delhi court has denied bail to Shahrukh Pathan, the man who was seen pointing his gun at a police officer during the Delhi riots on February 24, 2020.
Denying his petition, the court observed:
The accused is alleged to have participated in the riots and has been duly identified. His picture speaks volumes about the involvement and the conduct of the accused on the said day.
The court also refused to grant him bail on the grounds that he could be a flight risk.
A video of Pathan wielding his gun and running towards head constable Deepak Dahiya went viral during the riots. After he was identified, a case against him was registered under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for rioting, being a member of unlawful assembly, attempt to murder and sections of the Arms Act.
According to LiveLaw, the special prosecutor D.K. Bhatia opposed the bail plea, stating that after the incident at Jafrabad metro station, Pathan had absconded. He was arrested by a team of the Delhi Police’s Crime Branch unit on March 3 from the Shamli bus stand in Uttar Pradesh.
The prosecutor also said that the illegal weapon and two live cartridges were also recovered from his home.
However, Pathan’s counsel Khalid Akhtar submitted that his client has been languishing behind bars for the past 10 months, despite the non-commencement of trial. He also argued that head constable Dahiya’s statement is contradictory to the video and the statement made under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
The complainant was never shot at, Akhtar argued. Hence, Section 307 of the IPC (attempt to murder) cannot be invoked against him.
Akhtar also argued that the prosecution had made his client the “poster boy” without any basis, according to LiveLaw.
The court, taking into account the allegations against Pathan, observed that his “picture speaks volumes” his involvement and conduct on the said day.
Additional sessions judge Amitabh Rawat observed:
“What is material is the gravity of the offence and the allegations against the accused which are quite grave. And added to it is the conduct of the accused showing that he does not satisfy the triple test for grant of bail.”
The court also emphasised Pathan’s conduct after February 24, 2020, when he absconded. According to LiveLaw, the judge added:
“Going by the conduct of the accused and the manner in which he absconded and was arrested later on, suggests that he is a flight risk.”
The court opined that it did not need to go into the merit’s of the argument made by Akhtar regarding discrepancies in the statement of the complainant for the purpose of bail. The court said for this petition, the contents of the chargesheet along with documents/annexures only have to be looked at.
The Northeast Delhi riots, which mostly took place between February 23 and 26, resulted in the death of 53 persons. At least 581 persons were injured, out of which about 97 persons sustained gunshot injuries. In total, the police have registered 751 FIRs relating to the riots.