A session court on Tuesday (July 16) acquitted the 'khadim' (servitor) of Ajmer Sharif dargah, Gauhar Chishti and five others accused of inciting a mob on June 17, 2022 at the main gate of the shrine, by raising the provocative slogan 'Gustakh-e-Nabi Ki Ek Hi Sazaa, Sar Tan Se Juda, Sar Tan Se Juda' slogan against suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma. The former BJP leader had earlier made certain derogatory remarks against Prophet Mohammad. As many as 22 witnesses appeared before the court and 32 documents were placed during the trial, which went on for over two years. In his judgement, the sessions court judge pointed to critical lapses in the investigation by police, which was working under the then Congress government led by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.
The session court said that police failed to place concrete evidence to substantiate its charges. Gauhar Chishti, who was released from jail on Friday, claimed that he was "framed as part of a conspiracy" and that he has got justice from the court. But tthe court's judgement says otherwise. It points out several technical lapses in police investigation. The complainant, Constable Jai Narayan, who had shot the video of Gauhar Chishti giving a provocative speech on his mobile phone, kept the cell phone with him from June 17 till June 25, but did not deposit it with the investigating officer. Jai Narayan says, he showed the video to two witnesses, Banwari Lal and Dalbir Singh. The court said that the very fact that no action was taken despite showing the video to two witnesses, "makes the prosecution's story doubtful". In 2023, Jai Narayan told the court that his cell phone had broken down, but a CD of the video was made on June 30, 2022. The court said, the date when the CD was created and the condition of the cell phone raise questions about the reliability of the evidence. The judge pointed out that all the 22 witnesses who were heard in court, belonged to the police, and were not common citizens. The court said, the video was placed before the court, but no forensic test was carried out, nor was the policeman's cell phone seized.
In view of all these, the court acquitted all the six accused for want of concrete evidence. Since Ashok Gehlot was chief minister of Rajasthan at that time, BJP leaders have alleged that police deliberately weakened the case due to political pressures. The present BJP chief minister Bhajanlal Sharma is unhappy and he has reprimanded the Ajmer prosecution department. Prosecution lawyer Virendra Singh Rathore said, there was evidences about Gauhar Chishti's hate speech, and in the video, he was clearly heard shouting the provocative slogan, but the court did not accept this as evidence. He promised to go into appeal before the High Court. It may be recalled that Gauhar Chishti had fled to Hyderabad after giving the hate speech. Nasir, who sheltered him in Hyderabad, was also made an accused, but police could not prove his complicity in this case. Gauhar Chishti claimed before the court that he did not escape, but had gone to Hyderabad for a visit. The interesting part is that police had photographs of Gauhar Chishti with Nasir, but the court did not accept this as evidence. There is not an iota of doubt that Rajasthan Police displayed negligence and deliberately removed concrete evidence, thus making the prosecution case weak. There is no need for the court to tell the police that the device with which the video was recorded, is always sent for forensic test. Instead of conducting a forensic test, the mobile phone video was transferred to a CD, and the original video in the constable's phone was deleted.
When the court asked the prosecution lawyer about the original video, it was told that the video has been deleted. When the court asked where was the police constable's phone now, it was told that the cell phone failed to work, and it was now missing. The court asked, since the slogans were chanted in front of a big crowd, why were all the witnesses in this case policemen only. The prosecution had no answer. When the court asked why police could not find a single independent witness, the prosecution side had no cogent reply. On the basis of all these circumstances, the sessions court acquitted all the six accused including Gauhar Chishti. It would now be interesting to find out whether police did all this at the local level, or whether there were instructions from above to weaken the prosecution's case. It also needs to be probed whether it was a case of police negligence or it was a calculated political decision taking advantage of a pliable police.
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