Delhi High Court dismisses pleas for SIT probe into 2020 riots and Jamia violence

The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed a batch of petitions seeking an independent investigation or a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the 2020 northeast Delhi riots and the December 2019 violence at Jamia Millia Islamia.

A division bench of Justice Vivek Chaudhary and Justice Manoj Jain also turned down prayers demanding the registration of first information reports (FIRs) against political figures for alleged hate speech, as well as pleas seeking action against police officers.

"For the reasons mentioned in the judgment, all the petitions are dismissed," the bench said while delivering the operative order in court. The judges noted that the batch was split into two distinct parts: one dealing with the northeast Delhi communal clashes, and the other addressing the violence that erupted at Jamia Millia Islamia during demonstrations against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. A detailed judgment setting out the court's reasoning is awaited.

What the Delhi riots petitions sought

The petitions over the northeast Delhi riots date back to 2020, following communal violence that erupted on 24 February that year amid tensions surrounding the citizenship law. The clashes left at least 53 people dead and around 700 injured.

The petitioners asked the court to set up a court-monitored SIT, a judicial commission of inquiry, or a fact-finding committee to examine how the violence unfolded and to scrutinise the role of the Delhi Police. Some pleas sought compensation and medical care for victims, alongside action against officers accused of dereliction of duty or violence.

A significant element of the litigation involved demands for criminal cases against politicians. One petition, brought by Shaikh Mujtaba, sought FIRs against Bharatiya Janata Party leaders Anurag Thakur, Kapil Mishra, Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma, and Abhay Verma, alleging their remarks incited the unrest.

Another petition, filed by the organisation Lawyers Voice, sought prosecution of several opposition figures for alleged inflammatory remarks. These included Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, Aam Aadmi Party legislator Amanatullah Khan, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen leaders Asaduddin Owaisi and Akbaruddin Owaisi, activist Umar Khalid, and former Bombay High Court judge B.G. Kolse-Patil.

A separate plea by CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat sought an independent probe into complaints against police personnel and paramilitary forces, while another petitioner, Ajay Gautam, called for the National Investigation Agency to examine the funding of anti-CAA demonstrations.

The Jamia Millia Islamia violence petitions

The second group of petitions stemmed from the December 2019 police action inside the Jamia Millia Islamia campus. Several students, including law student Nabila Hasan, approached the court seeking an independent investigation outside the control of the Delhi Police and the Union government into alleged police brutality against students inside the university.

The Delhi Police opposed the transfer of the probe to another body, maintaining that CCTV footage from both inside and outside the campus had been collected promptly and preserved. A National Human Rights Commission report on the Jamia clash had previously described the gathering as an unlawful assembly that prompted police intervention.

The High Court reserved its verdict on the entire batch of matters on 24 July, following years of hearings and earlier directions from the Supreme Court asking for an expeditious disposal.