2020 Delhi riots

North East Delhi riots
Date	23 February 2020 – present (four years)
Location	North East Delhi, India 28.682°N 77.274°E / 28.682; 77.274
Caused by	Hate speech provocation confrontation mass mobilization religious nationalism Islamophobia
Goals	Preventing Citizenship Amendment Act protests Ethnic and religious persecution
Methods	Pogrom rioting arson looting burglary mass murder shooting
Status	Ongoing
Casualties
Death(s)	46
Injuries	200+
Arrested	600 (including detained)

On the night of 23 February 2020, a series of riots and violent incidents began in the Jaffrabad area of North East Delhi in which 46 people were killed and more than 200 people were injured.

On 23 February 2020, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kapil Mishra demanded of the Delhi Police to clear roads which had been occupied by people protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and failing which, he threatened of forcefully ending the protests. Shortly after his statement, violent clashes started across North East Delhi. Mobs carrying saffron flags and chanting Jai Shri Ram vandalized and torched mosques and properties of Muslims. In the ensuing violence that went on for several days, properties of both Muslims and Hindus were destroyed, with the majority of properties affected belonging to Muslims; three mosques were burned, a temple was damaged, and several schools, shops, houses and vehicles were torched by rioters. 42 people were killed, the majority of whom were Muslims and 70 were injured.

The Delhi Police have been accused by many witnesses of not doing enough to stop and prevent the violence and in many instances of aiding the perpetrators. The Delhi High Court criticized the police for failing to file cases against BJP leaders citing hate speech and its inability to control the riots. Several journalists reporting on the riots stated that they had been threatened by pro-CAA mobs. As of 28 February 2020, the police had registered 123 FIRs and arrested or detained around 600 individuals involved in the violence.

Background

See also: Citizenship Amendment Act protests

Protests began across India in December 2019 in response to the passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) by both houses of Parliament. Protesters have rejected not only the CAA, but also the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the National Population Register (NPR).

The Delhi Legislative Assembly election was held on 8 February 2020, in which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was defeated by the Aam Admi Party. The BJP used incendiary slogans such as "The betrayers of the nation, kill those scoundrels with bullets." to refer to the protesters as part of their campaign. BJP leader Kapil Mishra, who coined the slogan, also made hate speeches which Delhi BJP chief, Manoj Tiwari, attributes to be the cause of the BJP defeat.

On 22 February, around 500 to 1,000 protesters, including women, began a sit-in protest near the Jaffrabad metro station. The protest blocked a stretch of Seelampur–Jaffrabad–Maujpur road, as well as the entry and exit to the metro station. According to the protesters, the sit-in was in solidarity with the Bharat Bandh called by the Bhim Army, which was scheduled to begin on 23 February. Police and paramilitary personnel were deployed at the site.

Incitement of violence

File:Kapil Mishra (cropped).jpg

Three complaints have been filed against BJP leader Kapil Mishra for making provocative speeches and inciting violence.

At around 12 p.m. local time on 23 February 2020, Mishra called on his supporters to gather in large numbers at Maujpur Chowk at 3 p.m. "to give an answer to Jaffrabad [blockade]". He spoke out publicly in a rally against the CAA protesters, standing next to the DCP of North East Delhi district, Ved Prakash Surya. Mishra threatened to take matters into his own hands and "not remain peaceful" if the police did not remove the protesters from Jaffrabad and Chand Bagh area in three days' time. After the rally, Mishra posted a video threatening police on Twitter.

Within a few hours of Kapil Mishra's rally, violent clashes started between the supporters and the opponents of the CAA. Mobs carrying the saffron flags and chanting Jai Shri Ram vandalised and torched mosques and properties of Muslims. In the ensuing violence that went on for several days, 42 people were killed—the majority of whom were Muslims.

Relatives of the people who died in the violence accused Mishra of inciting the clashes and asked for his immediate arrest and strict punishment. The father of a victim, Rahul Solanki, claimed that Mishra instigated a fire and then returned to his home, while their children became victims of the violence. He added that people will continue to lose their children until Mishra gets arrested.

BJP's member of parliament from East Delhi, Gautam Gambhir, on 25 February stated that "Kapil Mishra's speech is not acceptable" and asked for strict action to be taken against the people responsible for violence, regardless of which political party they belonged to.

"Kapil Mishra aag lagaa ke ghar mein ghus gya, hum jaison ke bete mar rahe hain."
("Kapil Mishra started the violence and then went back to his house, while our children are getting killed.")

—father of Rahul Solanki, a young victim who died after being attacked during the riots.

Three complaints (two police complaints for a report and one plea to the Supreme Court) have been filed against Kapil Mishra for allegedly inciting violence. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Corporator Reshma Nadeem filed the first complaint and the second was filed by Haseeb ul Hasan. The complaints alleged that Mishra had made inflammatory remarks publicly, inciting people and causing the violence. The police has taken no action against Mishra as of 28 February 2020.

On 25 February, Mishra wrote in series of tweets that he was not scared of the "massive hate campaign" against him for "speaking truth" and supporting the CAA. He had tweeted a video and wrote that "Jaffrabad has been vacated, there won't be another Shaheen Bagh". On the following day, he targeted his critics by tweeting that those who do not consider Burhan Wani and Afzal Guru terrorists were demanding his arrest.

Journalists that covered the incidents said that the people of the localities were confident that their neighbours did not engage in violence against them. Rather they blamed the "outsiders".

Timeline

23 February

On 23 February between 3.30 p.m. and 4 p.m., Mishra, along with his supporters, reached the protest site at Jaffarabad and delivered a provocative speech. At approximately 4 p.m., protesters reportedly hurled stones at the pro-CAA gathering at Maujpur Chowk and near a temple. Within hours of his speech, clashes broke out between the anti-CAA and pro-CAA demonstrators in Maujpur, Karawal Nagar, Maujpur Chowk, Babarpur and Chand Bagh. Police used lathi charge (baton charge) and tear gas to disperse the crowd.

24 February

On the morning of 24 February, a pro-CAA mob came close to an anti-CAA protest site at Jaffrabad and raised slogans. They refused to leave until the anti-CAA protesters left the site. By afternoon violent clashes broke out in several areas of North East Delhi. By evening, one such violent clash occurred in the Gokulpuri and Kardampuri area where a tyre market was set on fire. In the clash one police head constable, Ratan Lal, and a protester were killed. It was initially reported that he died due to head injuries from a stone thrown at him in Gokulpuri. However, according to the autopsy report, Lal had received fatal bullet injuries. The pro-CAA demonstrators and anti-CAA protesters clashed with each other and stones were pelted from both sides. During the violence, several houses, vehicles and shops were vandalised. The police personnel used tear gas and lathi charge against the protesters in the Chand Bagh area to control the clashes. Later, it was reported that six protesters had also died during the violence.

Violence was reported in the areas of Seelampur, Jafrabad, Maujpur, Kardampuri, Babarpur, Gokulpuri and Shivpuri. Section 144 (ban on assembly) was imposed in all the affected areas but the rioters were still active.

3,500 emergency calls were made to the police control room that day. Delhi Fire Service stated that it attended 45 calls from areas in northeast Delhi and three firemen were injured, on 24 February. While attending calls, a fire engine was attacked with stones, while another fire engine was set on fire by rioters.

25 February

On 25 February, stone pelting was reported from Maujpur, Brahampuri and other neighbouring areas. Rapid Action Force, a specialized police unit, was deployed in the worst affected areas.

In Ashok Nagar, a mosque was vandalized and a Hanuman flag was placed on one of the minarets of the mosque. It was also reported that prayer mats of the mosque were burnt and torn pages from the Quran were strewn outside the mosque. A mob sloganeering "Jai Shri Ram" and "Hinduon ka Hindustan" ("India for Hindus") marched around the mosque on fire. Shops and houses near the mosque were looted. According to the locals, the attackers were not the residents and had come to the locality from neighbouring areas. After the first wave of violence by rioters, the police evacuated Muslim residents and had taken them to the police station. While the residents were away, a second mosque in Ashok Nagar and a third in Brijpuri were also torched. A three-storey house and eight shops in the vicinity were also torched. According to locals, the rioters could not be identified.

In Brijpuri, a mosque, madrassa and school were torched using petrol bombs. Around 50 rioters entered into a school in the evening and vandalized and set it on fire.

Another mosque was vandalised in Gokulpuri. The mobs from both communities came face to face and hurled stones and petrol bombs at each other. The mobs from one community shouted slogans of "Jai Shri Ram", while mobs from other community shouted "Allah hu Akbar".

At 3 p.m. in Durgapuri, both the Hindu and Muslim mobs clashed by pelting stones and shooting. Police was not present initially in the area and arrived an hour later. The rioters had tilak on their foreheads, and shouted "Jai Sri Ram" and "Har Har Mahadev". Shops and vehicles belonging to the Muslims were torched.

At Gamri extension a mob attacked a lane and an 85-year-old woman was burnt to death, when her house was set on fire.

In Karawal Nagar, acid was thrown by protesters on the paramilitary personnel who were deployed in the area to maintain law and order.

Among the injured, more than 70 people have gunshot injuries. People wielding sticks and iron rods were reported to be roaming on the streets in the areas of Bhajanpura, Chand Bagh and Karawal Nagar localities. At 10 p.m., shoot at sight orders were given to police in the riot affected area.

The dead body of Ankit Sharma, a trainee driver in the Intelligence Bureau at Chanakyapuri, was found in a drain in Jafrabad, a day after he went missing. The circumstances leading to his death are under investigation. According to post mordem report, he was repeatedly stabbed, leading to his death. A First information report (FIR) was registered against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain for murder.

7,500 emergency calls were made to the police control room throughout the day, the highest in the week.

26 February

The National Security Advisor of India Ajit Doval visited violence-affected areas of North East Delhi in the evening. However, reports of violence, arson and mob lynching emerged from Karawal Nagar, Maujpur and Bhajanpura later that night.

1,500 emergency calls were made to the police control room that day. Complains of delayed post-mortem reports were aired from several hospitals while witnesses and affected individuals who claimed to be civilians gave statements. Some of them blamed Kapil Mishra for the riots while one individual stated that a mob attacked them with stones and swords while chanting the Takbir.

27 February

In Shiv Vihar, between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. clashes were reported. Three injured persons were admitted to hospital, one whom had bullet wounds. A godown, 2 shops and a motor cycle were torched.

28 February

With another killing in the day, the death toll reached 42. A 60-year-old rag picker, who had stepped out of home assuming the situations had normalized, was attacked and died on way to the hospital due to head injuries.

Attacks on journalists

Several incidents of mobs attacking journalists were reported during the riots. A journalist of JK 24x7 News was shot on 25 February while reporting in the Maujpur area. Two journalists of NDTV along with a cameraman were attacked by the mob while they were recording the torching of a mosque in the area. One of the journalists sustained severe injuries. A journalist involved in the same incident had to intervene and convince the mob that the journalists were "Hindus" to save them from further assault.

On 25 February, a photojournalist of The Times of India was heckled by the Hindu Sena members while taking pictures of a building which had been set on fire. The group tried to put a "tilak on his forehead" claiming that it will "make his job easier" as he could then be identified as a Hindu by the rioters. They questioned his intentions of taking pictures of the building on fire and further threatened to remove his pants to reveal that he is not circumcised, as evidence of being a Hindu. The reporter was later approached by another rioter who demanded him to prove his religion.

Several journalists shared their experience with rioters on Twitter. A journalist of Times Now tweeted that she was attacked by pro-CAA and right-wing protesters. She said that she had to plead with the mob, who were carrying stones and sticks, to escape from the site. Journalists of Reuters, India Today, CNN-News18 too expressed their experiences and stated that they were assaulted.

The Hindustan Times reported that a motorcycle, which belonged to one of its photographers who was documenting the violence in Karawal Nagar, was set on fire by a masked mob. After torching the motorcycle, the mob threatened, assaulted him and seized the memory card in his camera. They asked for his official identity card and took a photograph of it before letting him leave.

The Editors Guild of India issued a statement on 25 February in which it expressed its concern about the attacks on journalists as an assault on freedom of the press in India. They urged the Home Ministry and the Delhi Police to investigate the incidents and bring the perpetrators to justice.

Handling of the riots by Delhi Police

The Delhi Police's ability to maintain the law and order and bring the peace back in riot-affected areas has been questioned multiple times via various sources. The police allegedly took no action even though present when the violence resulted in murders. They remained lax in deploying policemen on 23 February, when multiple intelligence reports requested for more forces to prevent the tense situation (created by Mishra's speech) from escalating further. Victims of the riot reported that the police did not respond promptly when called, claiming that the officers were busy. Other reports also suggested that the police beat up residents of riot-affected areas.

In one incident, a video shared on social media on 26 February shows a group of men being assaulted by the police as they lay on the ground, forcibly singing the national anthem of India and "Vande Mataram" on the demands of the policemen. The boys' families claimed that they were detained in the lockup for two days and beaten further. One of the men, Faizan, was admitted in the neurosurgery wing of LNJP Hospital and died on 29 February from critical gunshot wounds. Another of the men was reported to have suffered serious injuries.

The lack of the police's prompt availability may be attributed to the large police force deployed to line the roads for Trump's visit. The police had reportedly informed the Ministry of Home Affairs of the shortfall of policeman available for immediately controlling the violence, but this was denied by the Ministry.

When the Delhi High Court bench ordered Delhi Police to file FIRs against the people whose speeches triggered the riots, the Police and the government remarked that they had consciously not done so, citing that arresting them would not restore immediate peace. They further informed the court that they would need more time to investigate the matter.

When a team of lawyers visited Jagatpuri police station to visit the anti-CAA protestors detained by the police, they were reportedly abused by police personnel. The lawyers then wrote to the Delhi commissioner of police, demanding action against the officer who assaulted them.

Reaction and response

Reactions

On 25 February the Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal stated that the Police, despite its efforts, was unable to control the violence and requested the Army's assistance in stopping the violence as the number of deaths climbed to 23.

AAP leader Sanjay Singh released a video in which BJP MLA from Laxmi Nagar, Abhay Verma, was seen leading crowds that raised slogans "Police ke hatyaaron ko, goli maaro saalon ko"(transl. Shoot the people, who murdered the policeman), "Jo Hindu hit ki baat karega, wohi desh pe raj karega" (transl. People who talk about the welfare of Hindus, only they will rule in the country) and "Jai Shree Ram". Singh accused Home Minister Amit Shah of holding an "all-party meeting, pretending to restore peace and their MLA is engaged in inciting riots." Verma meanwhile defended himself claiming the slogans were raised by civilians.

Indian National Congress president Sonia Gandhi held a press conference where she demanded that Shah should resign for failing to stop the violence. She asked for the deployment of an adequate number of security forces.

After three days of violence with 20 deaths, the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, shared a message on Twitter asking people to maintain peace. It was noted that he reacted only after the departure of President of the United States Donald Trump, whom he had been hosting on a state visit while the riots began.

On 26 February, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) conveyed “grave concern” over the riots and requested the Indian government to provide protection to people, no matter which faith they belonged to. US Senator and 2020 US presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, along with multiple other American politicians, also expressed their concerns over the events. In response on 27 February 2020, the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson, Raveesh Kumar, stated that these remarks were "factually inaccurate" and "misleading and they were trying to politicise the issue. In response, BJP general secretary, BL Santhosh threatened Sanders with election interference due to his condemnation. The US issued a travel advisory for its citizens to exercise caution.

On 27 February, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet stated "Indians in huge numbers, and from all communities, have expressed – in a mostly peaceful manner – their opposition to the Act, and support for the country's long tradition of secularism,", she expressed concern on the citizenship law and reports of "police inaction" during the communal attacks in Delhi. Twelve eminent citizens of Bangladesh also expressed grave concern over the communal clashes on that day. They expressed fear that India's failure to handle the situation could create a volatile environment in its neighbouring countries, which could destroy peace, democracy, development and communal harmony in the region.

The Governor of Meghalaya, Tathagata Roy, wanted lessons to be learned from Deng Xiaoping's handling of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests for ways to handle the riots.

Response by the government

The law and order including police and public order in Delhi comes under Union Home Minister, Amit Shah

On 24 February 2020, the Ministry of Home Affairs stated that the violence appeared orchestrated to coincide with Trump's visit to India. The Ministry also refused to bring in the Army to control the riots and stated that the number of central forces and policemen on the ground was adequate. More than 6,000 police and paramilitary personnel were deployed in the area.

Home Ministry's meeting

On the morning of 25 February 2020, the Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal chaired an urgent meeting of all party MLAs from the violence-hit areas and senior officials. Several MLAs raised concerns on the lack of deployment of enough policemen. The concerns were raised by Kejriwal in the subsequent meeting chaired by Home Minister Shah and attended by Delhi Lieutenant-Governor Anil Baijal and senior police officials. The meeting concluded with the decision to take all possible steps to contain violence. Kejriwal stated that Shah had assured the availability of adequate number of policemen.

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval was given the responsibility of restoring peace in the region. On 26 February, Doval travelled to the violence-hit regions and talked to locals, assuring them of normalcy.

Delhi Government announcements

On 27 February, Kejriwal announced free treatment for the injured in government as well as private hospitals under the Farishta scheme. The government had made arrangements with the help of NGOs to supply food in areas where a curfew had been imposed. He also announced a compensation amount of ₹10 lakh (US$13,000) to affected people, ₹1 lakh (US$1,300) ex-gratia, and ₹5 lakh (US$6,300) in the case of a death of a minor. He also announced that the Delhi government had set up nine shelters for the people affected by the riots. For people whose houses were completely burnt, an immediate assistance of ₹25,000 (US$310) was announced.

Investigation

On 27 February 2020, Delhi Police informed that two Special Investigation Teams (SIT) were formed to investigate the violence. DCP Joy Tirkey and DCP Rajesh Deo were appointed head of these SITs respectively, along with four Assistant Commissioners in each team. Additional Commissioner of crime branch, B.K. Singh is supervising the work of the SITs. On 28 February 2020, the police also informed forensic science teams who visited the crime scenes to collect evidence.

As of 28 February 2020, police had registered 123 FIRs and around 600 individuals involved in the violence were taken into custody.

Supreme Court hearing

Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad Ravan, along with former Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah and social activist Syed Bahadur Abbas Naqvi, filed an appeal in the Supreme Court seeking direction to the police to file reports over cases of violence that occurred since the night of 23 February. His petition also accused Mishra of "inciting and orchestrating the riots". The plea was filed through Advocate Mehmood Pracha, in an intervention in a matter relating to removal of protesters from the public road in Shaheen Bagh and is scheduled for hearing on 26 February.

On 26 February, while hearing the issue, the Supreme Court criticized Delhi Police for not doing enough to stop the inflammatory speech and the violence. The bench consisted of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and K. M. Joseph slammed the police for lack of "professionalism" and questioned, why the police had to take orders to act during such law and order situation. The court added that the violence could have been prevented if the Police had taken the necessary action on the people who incited violence. The Supreme court did not entertain any plea on the Delhi incidents as the case is being heard in the Delhi High Court.

High Court hearing

A plea was filed in the Delhi High Court, seeking police reports and arrests of the people involved in the violence. It was to be received for an urgent hearing on 25 February. However, the court stated that the plea would be heard on 26 February. The plea filed by activists Harsh Mander and Farah Naqvi also asked for a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the incident, in addition to compensation for those killed and injured. It also requested for the deployment of the Indian Army to maintain law and order in the affected areas of Delhi.

Court hearing on 26 February

At midnight on 26 February, the court bench consisting of justices S. Muralidhar and Talwant Singh, started hearing the plea to provide the safe passage to the riot victims to reach their nearest government or private hospitals. In the midnight hearing, the court ordered police to safeguard and help all victims to reach their nearest hospitals. The bench has also directed the police to submit a report of compliance which should include information about the injured victims and the treatments offered to them. The same was to be placed before the court for the following hearing date.

In the morning during the hearing, the court asked the DCP of crime branch, Rajesh Deo and the Solicitor General of India, Tushar Mehta if they had watched the inflammatory speech given by Kapil Mishra. In response DCP, Deo surprised the court by saying he did not watch the video of Mishra but watched videos of Anurag Thakur and Parvesh Verma. Then the Court played the video clip of Kapil Mishra's speech. The court then directed the police to take decide within 24 hours on filing cases related to the hate speeches made by the four BJP leaders Kapil Mishra, Anurag Thakur, Parvesh Verma and Abhay Verma. The bench had expressed "anguish" on the inability of Delhi Police to control the riots and its failure to file FIRs against the BJP leaders for their hate speeches. It was noted that Delhi could not be allowed to repeat incidents like the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

Transfer of Justice Muralidhar

On the late night of 26 February, justice S. Muralidhar who presided over the bench, hearing the plea, was transferred to Punjab and Haryana High Court. He was transferred on the same day he condemned the Delhi Police for its failure in controlling the riots or filing cases against BJP leader for hate speech. However, official sources claimed that this was a routine transfer which had been recommended by the Supreme Court a fortnight before. BBC News reported that his "biting comments could have hastened his transfer". The news of his removal from the case was criticised by many Indians who expressed concern. Congress party called his transfer as a move to protect the accused BJP leaders. The Delhi High Court Bar Association criticised the transfer and asked the Supreme Court collegium to revoke the transfer.

Court hearing under new bench

On 27 February, the court resumed the hearing with a new bench consisting of the Chief justice, D.N. Patel and justice C. Hari Shankar. During the previous hearing, the Delhi police was given 24 hours to decide on the filing of FIRs over hate speeches by four BJP leaders. The government's lawyer claimed that the situation was not "conducive" and that the government needed more time before it could take appropriate action. The new bench accepted the same arguments that the previous bench had rejected. The new bench agreed to give the government more time to decide on filing of the cases for hate speech. The petitioners' lawyer requested for an earlier hearing, citing the increasing number of deaths but the court set 13 April as the date of the next hearing.

On 28 February, the court issued notices to Delhi and central governments seeking their responses on registering FIRs on Congress party leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi on the charges of delivering hate speeches. Hearing another plea, the bench also issued notice to Delhi police and central government for registration for FIR on AIMIM leaders Akbaruddin Owaisi, Asaduddin Owaisi, and Waris Pathan. The court later posted the matter to be heard again on 13 April.

Bibliography

• "Delhi violence: Four video clips that court made cops watch". The India Today. 26 February 2020. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
• "Delhi violence: Clashes between pro and anti CAA protesters kill 5 (Timeline of 24 February)". The India Today. 25 February 2020. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
• Vij, Shivam (26 February 2020). "The Delhi pogrom 2020 is Amit Shah's answer to an election defeat". ThePrint. Retrieved 27 February 2020.