In a significant move, a special MP-MLA court in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar has taken legal action against 19 political figures including senior BJP leaders in connection with the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots during which around 42 Muslims were killed.
The court, presided over by judge Devender Singh Fauzdar on January 3 framed serious charges against these political leaders including religious figures.
The accused include high-profile politicians including Uttar Pradesh minister Kapil Dev Aggarwal, former Union minister Sanjeev Balyan, former UP minister Suresh Rana, and Samajwadi Party MP Harender Malik.
Those charged also include Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) right-wing leader Sadhvi Prachi, former -BJP MP Bhartendu Singh, controversial priest Yati Narsinghanand, former BJP MLAs Ashok Kansal and Umesh Malik and former UP minister Ashok Katari. Interestingly, all of them were present in the court during the hearing, TOI reported.
The charges are substantial and include serious legal violations including violating prohibitory orders and inciting communal violence.
The court has filed charges under Section 153 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC),(wantonly giving provocation to cause a riot), 188 (disobedience to the order duly promulgated by a public servant), 341 (wrongfully confining someone) and 353 (the assault or use of criminal force against a public servant on duty). Furthermore, the provisions of the Criminal Law Amendment Act have been invoked.
Prosecution officer Niraj Singh said the accused used loudspeakers to conduct a meeting of the panchayat at Nagla Madore village on August 30, 2013, where they delivered hate speech, targeting a particular community that incited violence and violated prohibitory orders.
The circumstances of these charges are associated with the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots in which more than 60 people were killed, and more than 40 thousand people were displaced in western Uttar Pradesh.
The next hearing in this case is scheduled for January 30, marking a significant development in the long-standing legal proceedings related to these communal riots.
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