Flagging discrepancies in the statements of two police officers, a Delhi court on Thursday acquitted two persons accused of allegedly being part of a mob that burnt down a masjid in February 2020 during the Northeast Delhi riots.
While all public witnesses turned hostile, Additional Sessions Judge Pulastya Pramachala chose to not trust the statements of two police witnesses which the prosecution relied upon citing inconsistencies in them. “Constable Kalik (PW5), on one hand, claimed that he had seen both accused for the first time after the riots on March 9, 2020. However, it was admitted by him during his cross-examination by the defence that he was part of the police team on March 5, 2020, when both these accused were arrested in the same FIR,” the judge said, adding that constable Pradeep Kumar (the other police witness) was also a part of the team.
“In these circumstances, the statements given by PW4 and PW5 (both police witnesses) for having identified both accused during incidents probed in this case, at a subsequent time i.e. on 09.03.2020, do appear as abnormal development. One cannot rule out that their statements were given or prepared with a pre-determined mindset against both accused…,” the judge added.
This story was originally published in indianexpress.com. Read the full story here.
