Turkman Gate violence: Delhi Court Sends 8 Accused to Judicial Custody till Jan 21

The accused: Afaan, Adil, Shahnawaz, Amir Hamza, Ubadullah, Atharr, Mohammad Imran and Mohammad Imran, were produced before Judicial Magistrate Sayesha Chada of Tis Hazari Court who remanded them to judicial custody till January 21.

The Court noted that the grounds of arrest had been duly supplied and observed that, prima facie, the presence of the accused at the site of violence was apparent.

During the hearing, five other accused: Mohammad Arib, Kashif, Adnan, Mohammad Kaif and Sameer, sought bail. Their counsel alleged that the accused had been assaulted by jail staff within the jail premises. Taking note of the allegations, the Court issued notice to the Delhi Police on the bail applications and also directed the jail superintendent to place the medical records of all five accused on record before the next date of hearing.

The defence sought additional time to address the bail pleas in view of a fresh status report filed by the police. The Court allowed the request and listed the matter for further hearing on January 13.

With the latest arrests, Delhi Police have so far apprehended 13 persons, including a juvenile, in connection with the incident.

Opposing the remand application, defence counsel argued that no video evidence had been supplied to corroborate the involvement of the accused in the alleged stone-pelting. Delhi Police, however, submitted that the arrests were based on identification by police personnel as well as CCTV footage in which the accused were clearly visible.

The police further informed the Court that Section 109 (attempt to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, had been invoked in the fresh arrests, in addition to other provisions relating to rioting and obstruction of public servants. It was submitted that six police personnel sustained injuries during the violence, including injuries to vital parts such as the head.

The defence countered the allegation of attempt to murder, arguing that there was no intention to cause death and that the injuries were minor in nature. The court observed that the gravity of the injuries and the applicability of the offence would be examined during trial.

Advocate Tushar Kadian appeared as the Public Prosecutor, while Advocate Atul Srivastava, appointed as Special Public Prosecutor, represented the Delhi Police.

The violence broke out during an anti-encroachment drive carried out by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi near the Faiz-e-Elahi mosque in the Ramlila Maidan area on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday. According to police sources, a social media post alleging that the mosque was being demolished led to large-scale mobilisation in the area.

Police claimed that around 150 to 200 people pelted stones and glass bottles at police personnel and MCD workers, injuring six officers, including the local station house officer.

MCD Deputy Commissioner Vivek Kumar stated that approximately 36,000 square feet of encroached area was cleared during the overnight drive. He clarified that while a diagnostic centre, a banquet hall and two boundary walls were demolished, the mosque itself was not damaged.