A PIL has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking the laying down of national guidelines on prevention and accountability of communal violence. The PIL petition filed by Yogita Bhayana also prays for setting up of a Supreme Court-monitored Special Investigation Team (SIT) to ensure “justice to the victims of the Delhi riots” of February 2020 in which 40 people died and scores were injured or lost their homes and livelihood.
The petition states that independent media reports suggest that when the riot-affected victims had reached out to the Delhi Police for help, there was no help extended from the law enforcement agency. It was the petitioner’s contention that the police failure to act was on account of lack of a “law with teeth” or directions to this effect, the petitioner submitted.
There is a widespread feeling that the Delhi Police were mute spectators to the violence which led to bloody communal riots. The credibility of the Delhi police touched a new low as reports hinted that at least six alerts were sent to the force, warning about possible communal violence on Sunday, 23 February, when BJP leader Kapil Mishra had called for a gathering at Maujpur — one of the most grave riot hit areas of northeast Delhi — against the anti-CAA protesters who had blocked a road in the area causing traffic jams.
Despite the police having information about the possible outbreak of violence, their failure to act will be one of the most enduring mysteries of recent times.
India Legal Bureau