FIRs registered in connection with North East Delhi violence sensitive: Police to HC

Delhi Police has told the Delhi High Court that a conscious decision has been taken to declare the FIRs registered in connection with North East Delhi violence as "sensitive".

The Delhi Police filed its status report in pursuance of the Delhi High Court order dated May 12.

The High Court was hearing a petition filed by CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat seeking direction to Delhi Police to direct that copies of FIRs registered pursuant to the violence in North East Delhi be uploaded on the Delhi Police website.

Opposing Karat's plea, Delhi Police in its status report said: "This has been done primarily to preserve the communal harmony as putting these FIRs in public domain would disclose the names of complainants, witnesses and accused persons. However, this is in no way to prejudice the rights of the accused person."

The police said that it is following the procedure for providing of copy of FIR to an accused as per the directions of Supreme Court citing judgements which has laid mechsm for providing FIR. It said that mechsm for providing FIR cannot be diluted through a Public Interest Litigation (PIL).

"As far as providing of such other documents mentioned in the prayer under reply are concerned, it is submitted that these documents cannot be provided during the pendency of investigation of the case as it may hamper the investigation of the case. However, as and when a charge-sheet is filed before the concerned Court, the accused is provided a full set of charge sheet including all those documents mentioned in the prayer by the Court free of cost as per the provision prescribed under Section 207 of CrPC," the police said.

Further, in all cases of arrest, the accused person is produced before judicial magistrate as stipulated in CrPC and as per the requirement of the case, the investigating officer seeks the police custody of the accused for further investigation, the police said and added that in each and every case legal aid is available to the accused.

Karat sought to supply of copies of FIRs, Remand Applications, orders of remand and ground of arrest and copies of charge sheets to the families and counsels of accused persons.

The police filed a list of persons detained and arrested by Delhi Police since March 24 in a sealed cover.

Questioning Karat's locus standi in the matter, the police told the court that the petitioner is neither an accused nor a complainant nor a witness in any of the 751 cases registered in connection with riots in North East district and disclosing the names of the persons arrested/detained during the period of investigation would prejudice the right of the accused.

( With inputs from ANI )