‘Damage to social fabric’: 9 men sentenced to 7-year jail in North-East Delhi riots case | India News

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Tuesday sentenced nine men to rigorous imprisonment of seven years in jail in a case relating to the 2020 North-East Delhi riots.
“Communal riots are treated as one of the most violent forms of public disorder that afflict society. It (sic) leads to not only loss of life and property but also causes great damage to the social fabric. During communal riots, innocent ordinary people get caught in circumstances beyond their control, which leads to the violation of human rights as well,” said the court of additional sessions judge Pulastya Pramachala.
The court stated that the acts of the nine men instilled a sense of insecurity among people and jeopardised communal harmony in society. They were convicted in March for offences punishable under IPC Sections 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 380 (theft in dwelling house), 427 (mischief causing damage of Rs 50 or upwards), 436 (mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to destroy house, etc) 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant).

“Thus, the impact of the crime committed by the convicts in this case is not limited to loss caused to the complainant only. Rather their acts left a deep scar over the social fabric, and economy and stability of our nation. The alleged acts instilled sense of insecurity among the people, while jeopardising the communal harmony in the society,” the court added.
The court sentenced Mohammad Shahnawaz, Mohammad Shoaib, Shahrukh, Rashid, Azad, Ashraf Ali, Parvez, Md Faisal and Rashid, alias Monu, for the offences of rioting and being part of unlawful assembly in FIR registered in Gokulpuri police station.
The convicts have been awarded simple imprisonment of one year for the offence under Sections 148 and 427, simple imprisonment of three years for the offence under Section 380, rigorous imprisonment of seven years for the offence under Section 436 and simple imprisonment of six months for offence under Section 188 of IPC.
A fine of Rs. 21,000 has also been imposed on each convict. Of the total amount, Rs. 1.5 lakh is directed to be disbursed to the complainant as compensation, the court directed, adding that it is not an easy task for a victim to substantiate the loss through documents in all the cases, especially if everything was burnt.
“At the same time, any claim of loss may not be a true account of loss. In such cases, a notional amount is fixed by the court, while keeping in view the nature of the incident,” said the court.