New Delhi, 24 July (H.S.): A Delhi court on Friday deferred the hearing in the case against two police personnel accused of assaulting five Muslim youths during the 2020 northeast Delhi violence and allegedly forcing them to sing the Indian national anthem, an incident that gained widespread attention after a video of the episode went viral on social media.

Special Judge Gaurav Rao of the Rouse Avenue Sessions Court adjourned the matter to August 17 for verification of the documents filed along with the charge sheet against the accused police personnel.

The case was transferred to the Sessions Court by a Magistrate Court on March 14 after it held that the offences invoked in the matter fell within the jurisdiction of the Sessions Court. The Magistrate Court had granted bail to both accused policemen on personal bonds of ₹50,000 each and directed that copies of the charge sheet be supplied to both the accused and the complainant.

Earlier, on February 4, the court took cognisance of the charge sheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and issued summons to Head Constable Ravindra Kumar and Constable Pawan Yadav.

The CBI has charged the two policemen under Sections 323, 325, 304(II) and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Although the case concerns the death of a young man identified as Faizan, the investigating agency has not invoked charges of murder in the charge sheet.

The CBI filed the charge sheet in January following an investigation ordered by the Delhi High Court. On July 23, 2024, the High Court directed the CBI to investigate the matter while hearing a petition filed by Faizan's mother.

The case relates to a widely circulated video, commonly referred to as the Jana Gana Mana video, which allegedly showed five Muslim youths surrounded by police personnel who were seen forcing them to sing the national anthem while assaulting them. The youths were lying on the ground as they were allegedly beaten by the police.

According to the case records, Faizan was arrested by the police on February 24, 2020, during the northeast Delhi riots. He was reportedly released on February 25 in a critical condition and admitted to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) Hospital, where he died on February 26, 2020.

In her petition before the Delhi High Court, Faizan's mother alleged that her son informed her on the night of February 25–26, 2020, that he had been tortured and severely assaulted while in police custody. She further claimed that he had been kept in illegal detention at Jyoti Nagar Police Station and was denied timely medical treatment.

The petition also alleged that Faizan was released only after his health deteriorated significantly and the police realised that his condition had become critical. It further contended that although a murder case had been registered, the investigation was being conducted in a manner that sought to shield the police personnel involved.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar