New Delhi: A court here on Thursday dismissed the bail plea of Shahrukh Pathan, who hogged media spotlight as he pointed a pistol at a policeman and threatened to kill him during the 2020 northeast Delhi riots.
Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat was hearing Pathan’s plea seeking relief, saying as the accused was in custody since March 2020 and around 90 witnesses were yet to be examined, he could not be “put in jail for eternity”.
“Considering the conduct of the accused in jail during his judicial custody, his conduct prior to being arrested, conduct during court proceedings, and most importantly, the allegations against the accused which are supported by eyewitnesses and video footage…the court sees nothing to enlarge him on bail,” the judge said.
This is the seventh time that Pathan’s bail plea has been rejected by the trial court as well as the Delhi High Court.
The court noted that the present case was regarding Pathan brandishing a pistol and firing upon a Delhi Police head constable during the communal riots in Jafrabad here on February 24, 2020.
The court said since the framing of charges against Pathan, the prosecution was not at fault for the delay in the case.
“It (the delay) is primarily either co-accused persons purposefully absenting themselves on court dates necessitating discharge of the witness present; or because of an accused Kaleem Ahmed pleading guilty and thus, arguments and order on sentencing being necessitated,” the court said.
Another reason for the delay was co-accused Babu Wasim’s non-production as he had absconded, and was later arrested from Uttar Pradesh, it said.
It said the prison authorities recovered a mobile phone from Pathan and that his conduct in prison as seen in the footage played in the court was “completely unsatisfactory”.
The court also noted Pathan’s conduct during the proceedings on November 24 last year, where he passed a written slip mentioning a phone number to a co-accused, who had been released on bail.
The court also agreed with the submission of Special Public Prosecutor Anuj Handa that from the statement of eyewitnesses and various CCTV footages, it was clear that Pathan was part of the riotous mob, which fired upon the head constable and other public persons.
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