‘Active Member of the Riotous Mob’: First Conviction in Delhi Riot Cases

25-year-old Dinesh Yadav was an "active member of the riotous mob," according to the prosecution.

This picture was taken on 24 February in the middle of the riots that broke out between Maujpur and Jaffrabad in North East Delhi. Of the 53 people who died, two-thirds were Muslims and the remaining Hindus. Image used for representation.

(Photo: Arnica Kala/ Aishwarya S Iyer/The Quint)

A Delhi court on Monday, 6 December, convicted a man for being part of a riotous mob that set a house on fire during the Delhi riots that took place in February 2020.

Additional Sessions Judge Virender Bhat convicted 25-year-old Dinesh Yadav for being a member of an unlawful assembly, rioting, arson, house trespassing, and robbery. Yadav is facing two other riot cases as well.

Listing the matter for order on sentence on 22 December, ASJ Bhat noted in the order, "The accused stands convicted for offences punishable under sections 143 (member of an unlawful assembly), 147 (punishment for rioting), 148 (rioting armed with deadly weapon), 457 (house tresspass), 392 (robbery), 436 (arson) of IPC read with section 149 (member of unlawful assembly guilty of common offence) of IPC,” news agency PTI reported.

Sanjay Kumar Sain, DCP northeast district, said in a press statement, "It is great to share that the first conviction order has been issued today in respect of Northeast Riot Cases."

Yadav was an "active member of the riotous mob," as per the prosecution, and took active participation in setting on fire the house of a 73-year-old woman named Manori on the night of 25 February last year.

Manori had alleged that a mob of around 150-200 rioters had attacked her house when her family was away and looted all the articles and even the buffalo, PTI reported.

However, Yadav's lawyers had argued that he was falsely implicated and that out of a mob of over 100 people, only he was arrested by the police.

The prosecution on the other hand had argued that Yadav was identified by the complainant in her supplementary statement. Further, the police also relied on two police witnesses and a public witness in this case, The Indian Express reported.

Yadav's conviction is the second judgment passed in a riots case, the first being the acquittal of a 27-year-old man in July, who was accused of looting a shop, thinking it belonged to a Muslim man.

The Delhi riots took place in February 2020 and had resulted in the death of as many as 53 people, out of whom 38 were Muslims and 15 were Hindus.

(With inputs from PTI.)