Murder charge may be off Azad Maidan rioters

Rioters involved in the Azad Maidan violence on August 11 this year, in which two persons died and 63 were injured, might get some relief as the murder charges against them are likely to be dropped.

However, on whether the rioters are to be booked under section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code or not,  a crime branch officer said that this will be clear only when the charges are framed and after the charge sheet is filed. If the crime branch decides to scrap section 302, then it would their onus to explain how the two men were killed in the riots.

Moreover, an officer said they are likely to make many more arrests in the case through which they can gather more facts and clarity on the sequence of events during the riots.

During the course of the investigation, the police found that orchestrators of the riots had prepared two groups — one made up of men who would participate in the protest and the other group, of young boys who were instigated to participate in the rioting.

It has now been made clear that the riots were planned and that a group of men had joined the rally towards the end and created havoc.

So far, the crime branch has arrested 63 persons in the case of which five were released as they were, apparently, not involved.
Sources also said that Burmese national Yusuf Khan, who was recently arrested in the case, would frequently go to Jammu and Kashmir and that it appears as though the riots were funded from there. The police are looking into this and are trying to find out who Khan used to meet and stay with during his visits there.

On August 11, a group of protesters gathered at Azad Maidan against the killing of Muslims in Myanmar and Assam. The rally got violent when miscreants started pelting stones at the police and the media. Some men from the group were spotted carrying firearms and some others had snatched the service weapons of policemen.