CBI to probe death, victim forced to sing natl anthem

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) the case pertaining to the death of a 23-year-old man who was seen in a viral video being purportedly assaulted and forced to sing the national anthem during the communal riots here in 2020.

In a video clip that had gone viral on social media, Faizan, along with four other Muslim men, was seen being beaten up by policemen while being forced to sing the national anthem and “Vande Mataram”. Delivering the verdict on a petition filed by Faizan’s mother for a probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT), Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani said there are allegations of gross violation of human rights by the yet-to-be identified policemen who were “motivated and driven by religious bigotry”, and the fact that the perpetrators themselves are members of the investigating agency does not inspire confidence.

Observing that the police probe did not serve the spirit of the Supreme Court’s ruling on hate crimes being dealt with alacrity, Justice Bhambhani asserted that “mob-vigilantism” does not cease to be so when perpetrated by policemen themselves and, if anything, the “element of abomination gets aggravated” when they are committed by persons in uniform. “Far from preventing incidents of hate-crime, in the present case, admittedly some policemen are found to have indulged in mob-violence and mob-vigilantism inter-alia against the petitioner’s son,” the court said.

“In the circumstances, this court is persuaded to dispose-of the petition, by directing that investigation in case FIR.. dated 28.02.2020 registered at P.S.: Bhajanpura under sections 147, 148, 149 and 302 of IPC shall forthwith stand transferred to the CBI, New Delhi for further investigation, in accordance with law,” ordered the court. In its 38-page judgement, the court observed what the Delhi Police have done so far is “too-little, too-late” and there are various anomalies and aberrations in their investigation so far.

In the video footage, the court noted, several policemen are clearly seen surrounding, dragging, kicking and striking blows on Faizan and the other young men with batons and lathis, abusing them, and ordering them to sing the national anthem while they lay seriously injured and helpless on the roadside.