Delhi court orders FIR in mosque attack during February riots, police to challenge it in HC

On 25 February last year, rioters allegedly broke into Madina Masjid & set two LPG cylinders on fire causing an explosion. The next day, a saffron flag was hoisted on the mosque.

A mob had climbed the minaret of the mosque and planted a saffron flag | Manisha Mondal/ThePrint file

New Delhi: A Delhi court has ordered the police to register an FIR and carry out a probe into the alleged attack — burning and desecration — on a mosque in Northeast Delhi’s Shiv Vihar during riots in the national capital last year. 

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Mayuri Singh has directed SHO Karawal Nagar to register an FIR in the matter under appropriate sections, stating that a cognisable offence has been made out. 

“In my considered opinion, FIR is to be registered if a cognisable offence is made out. As per the allegations contained in the complaint regarding the incident of fire, etc in the Madina mosque, cognizable offence is clearly made out and a proper investigation is required as it cannot be said that all the evidences are within the reach of the complainant, even though he has named some of the persons allegedly involved in the offence,” the court order said.

The Delhi Police has, however, stated that it will challenge the order in the high court. 

“This order is wrong. The mosque case is already registered; it has been clubbed together in another FIR in connection to other cases of rioting and violence in the vicinity,” ACP Harish Chander, Karawal Nagar, told ThePrint. “We will challenge this order in the Delhi High Court.” 

Another senior police officer, who didn’t wish to be named, said, “The mosque case is already a part of the investigation. There will not be another FIR. We will soon challenge this order in the high court”. 

‘Desecration’ of the mosque

On 25 February last year, a group of rioters had allegedly broken into the Madina Masjid after a power cut and set two LPG cylinders on fire causing an explosion. The next day, a saffron flag was hoisted over the masjid, amid chants of ‘Jai Shri Ram’. 

An application was filed by advocate M.R. Shamsad, under Section 156 (3) of CrPC, urging the court to direct the police to lodge a separate FIR into matter. Section 156 (3) of CrPC empowers a magistrate to order an investigation into cognisable offences. 

In his application, Shamsad has said that a case of arson needed to be registered under a separate FIR, claiming that the incident being clubbed with others in another FIR makes it “irrelevant”. 

According to the complainant, 20-25 people had gathered at around 6 pm on 25 February in the lane leading to the Madina Masjid. They were allegedly armed with sticks, rods, acid and petrol bottles. Some of them took two LPG cylinders inside the mosque and set them on fire resulting in an explosion inside the mosque’s premises, the statement says, adding that a saffron flag was also hoisted over the mosque on the morning of 26 February. 

The local court has ordered a separate FIR but stated that its order is not a direction to the SHO to immediately arrest the accused. “The SHO /investigating agency should first investigate the matter and find out whether actually any offence has been committed or not,” the court said. “It is now a settled proposition of law that the power of arrest is different from justification to do so.”