Six cases registered in clash between police, advocates at Tis Hazari Court
Six cases have been registered in connection with the clash between police and lawyers at Tis Hazari Court complex in which at least 20 police personnel and a number of advocates were injured while many vehicles vandalised or set on fire, a Delhi Police spokesperson said on Sunday.
The cases were registered on separate complaints of the district judge of Tis Hazari court, four advocates, and a Delhi Police constable who was injured in the incident, additional PRO of the Delhi Police Anil Mittal said.
On the complaint of the district judge, a case has been registered on the charges of obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions, assault and rioting, the spokesperson said.
Four cases have been registered against police personnel on the complaints of as many advocates, including a woman, on the charges of attempt to murder, voluntarily causing hurt, wrongful confinement, criminal intimidation, theft and use of criminal force on woman with the intent of outraging her modesty.
Another case was filed on the complaint of a police constable, injured in the incident, on the charge of obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions, assault, attempt to murder, rioting and robbery, Mittal said.
All the six cases have been transferred to the special investigation team (SIT) of the Crime Branch, which will further probe the matter.
On the basis of the findings in a preliminary inquiry conducted by a police team headed by Special Commissioner of Police (Intelligence) Praveer Ranjan, Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) Kanta Prasad has been suspended for allegedly dragging an advocate inside the court lockup and beating him up.
Also, departmental action has been taken against ASI Pawan Kumar who allegedly fired at the lawyers.
Apart from Ranjan, the team, which conducted the preliminary inquiry, also comprises the additional commissioner of police (vigilance) and the deputy commissioner of police (special branch).
The team has been asked to complete its inquiry expeditiously and will comply with the High Court's order in the matter, Mittal said.
The High Court has directed the Delhi police commissioner to transfer Special Commissioner Sanjay Singh and Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Harinder Singh during the pendency of the inquiry.
The court complex turned into a virtual battleground on Saturday following an argument between advocates and police over parking.
Multiple CCTV footage, purportedly of the Saturday incident, showed the intensity of the violence that took place in the court lockup. In one of such videos, a group of lawyers was purportedly seen opening the gate of the lockup at 3:12 pm and vandalizing the place and attacking the police.
While some of the police personnel were purportedly seen going inside the complex, the lawyers caught hold of police personnel and beat him up. The policeman was dragged and kicked, with one of the lawyers purportedly seen using a belt to thrash him.
In another such clip, police were seen entering the gates and moving the lawyers out. They picked up the injured policeman and took him inside. After the lawyers protest, one of them was seen being caught by policemen and beaten up. The man was then dragged inside the court complex thrashed with batons.
Other videos of the purported incident show the lawyers trying to break the lock of the gate behind which the police were standing and setting ablaze several vehicles.
Two station house officers (SHOs) and an additional commissioner were among the 20 personnel injured, police said and claimed that eight lawyers suffered injuries.
Lawyers, however, said more of their colleagues were injured than the number claimed by the police. They also claimed that two advocates were injured in police firing, but police said they fired in the air.
Twelve motorcycles and nine police vehicles, including one of the Uttar Pradesh Police, were vandalised, officials said. Bar associations condemned the incident and called a one-day strike across all district courts in the national capital on November 4.
On Sunday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal visited St Stephen's Hospital to meet the lawyers who were injured in the Saturday clash.
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