The Crossbill Team
The Delhi High Court on Monday (April 7) urged the prosecution to demonstrate fairness by agreeing to preserve the full case diaries in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case involving student activist Devangana Kalita, instead of opposing her plea seeking clarification on a previous court order.
Kalita, who is facing charges along with fellow activist Natasha Narwal under a larger conspiracy FIR registered at the Jafrabad police station, has petitioned the court for clarity on whether the preservation order applies only to the Jafrabad-related records or the entire set of case records linked to the investigation.
The FIR pertains to a protest held on February 22–23, 2020, under the Jafrabad metro station against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). A counter-rally led by BJP leader Kapil Mishra followed on February 23, after which communal violence broke out in northeast Delhi. Kalita and Narwal were among those arrested for allegedly instigating the protests that led to the violence.
In December 2024, the High Court had directed the trial court to preserve the case diaries after Kalita raised allegations of tampering and antedating of witness statements recorded under Section 161 of the CrPC.
However, Kalita later filed a fresh plea challenging a November 6, 2024, order by a judicial magistrate in Shahdara, which declined to examine these allegations.
She is now seeking clarification on whether the preservation of records covers all documents related to the broader conspiracy case or just those linked to the Jafrabad protest.
Representing Kalita, Advocate Adit Pujari argued that limiting preservation to Jafrabad-specific records would render the exercise meaningless and insisted that the entire case record should be secured, The Indian Express reported.
Justice Ravinder Dudeja echoed this sentiment, observing that the documents already suggest prima facie evidence of antedating.
“It is already visible from the records that there is prima facie antedating. Why do you have any objection? Show your fairness and say you’ll preserve the entire records” Justice Dudeja asked the prosecution.
Responding to the court’s remarks, Special Public Prosecutor Anuj Handa said he had not objected to preserving the records per se, but pointed out that Kalita had not raised the issue until recently, despite the case being in progress for over a year.
He claimed that the timing of the plea appeared to be a response to the trial court’s indication that it would proceed to decide the matter on merits.
The High Court has now sought a formal response from the prosecution and scheduled the next hearing for July 7.
Kalita, who is facing charges along with fellow activist Natasha Narwal under a larger conspiracy FIR registered at the Jafrabad police station, has petitioned the court for clarity on whether the preservation order applies only to the Jafrabad-related records or the entire set of case records linked to the investigation.
The FIR pertains to a protest held on February 22–23, 2020, under the Jafrabad metro station against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). A counter-rally led by BJP leader Kapil Mishra followed on February 23, after which communal violence broke out in northeast Delhi. Kalita and Narwal were among those arrested for allegedly instigating the protests that led to the violence.
In December 2024, the High Court had directed the trial court to preserve the case diaries after Kalita raised allegations of tampering and antedating of witness statements recorded under Section 161 of the CrPC.
However, Kalita later filed a fresh plea challenging a November 6, 2024, order by a judicial magistrate in Shahdara, which declined to examine these allegations.
She is now seeking clarification on whether the preservation of records covers all documents related to the broader conspiracy case or just those linked to the Jafrabad protest.
Representing Kalita, Advocate Adit Pujari argued that limiting preservation to Jafrabad-specific records would render the exercise meaningless and insisted that the entire case record should be secured, The Indian Express reported.
Justice Ravinder Dudeja echoed this sentiment, observing that the documents already suggest prima facie evidence of antedating.
“It is already visible from the records that there is prima facie antedating. Why do you have any objection? Show your fairness and say you’ll preserve the entire records” Justice Dudeja asked the prosecution.
Responding to the court’s remarks, Special Public Prosecutor Anuj Handa said he had not objected to preserving the records per se, but pointed out that Kalita had not raised the issue until recently, despite the case being in progress for over a year.
He claimed that the timing of the plea appeared to be a response to the trial court’s indication that it would proceed to decide the matter on merits.
The High Court has now sought a formal response from the prosecution and scheduled the next hearing for July 7.
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