On 22nd April, the Delhi High Court rejected the bail plea of Salim Malik alias Munna in the anti-Hindu Delhi Riots larger conspiracy case. OpIndia accessed the court judgment in the matter. As per the court order, Salim was initially booked under Sections 120B, 147, 148 and 149 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) along with other accused. However, as the investigation moved forward, Sections 124A, 153A, 109, 114, 212, 353, 395, 427, 307, 302, 186, 4542 and 34 of IPC, Sections 3/4 of Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and Sections 13, 16, 17, 18 of UAPA were added.
He was first named in the FIR where head constable Ratal Lal lost his life and DCP Shahdara and ACP Gokulpuri sustained serious injuries. Later, based on the evidence, statements and CCTV footage, his name was also added to the larger conspiracy case.
According to the statement of Head Constable Sunil, Salim was present at the anti-CAA protest site at Chand Bagh area in Dayalpur Police Station. He, along with others, had put up tents and banners and used to give provocative hate speeches to the crowd gathered to protest. They used to instigate the people to join the protest against the Government of India in the name of religion. The order mentioned that he, along with DS Bindra, Salman Siddiqui and Saleem Khan used to organise “langar” for the protesters. Former AAP councillor and accused in Delhi Riots Tahir Hussain was providing them funds to run the protest.
On 24th February, DCP Amit Kumar Sharma and ACP Anuj Kumar tried to talk to Salim regarding the provocative speeches. However, the crowd, including women, pushed them away. Subsequently, violence erupted leading to the death of Head Constable Ratal Lal.
On his role in the riots, the court noted, “The appellant was one of the protestors, who had provoked the people present there to indulge in violence and consequently, there was pelting of stones and attack on the police personnel with sticks, rods etc. and the government and non-government property was extensively damaged.”
During the hearing at the Trial Court, Salim claimed he was not an accused or co-conspirator in the case and was falsely implicated. However, the public prosecutor contended that Salim, along with other co-accused hatched a conspiracy and opposed his bail. Based on the evidence, witness statements and various judgments, his bail was rejected by the lower court.
While contesting the judgment at the Delhi High Court, Salim’s counsel contended that he was not present at the protest site. Furthermore, he claimed that the protest was started by DS Bindra who was not named as an accused. The counsel added as Salim was a good cook, he was given responsibility for the kitchen at the backstage of the protest site at Chand Bagh. The counsel also argued parity based on the bail granted to other accused in the case namely Safoora, Faizan, Ishrat Jahan, Asif Iqbal Tanha, Devangana, Kalita and Natasha Narwan. However, it has to be noted here that while granting bail to these accused, the Supreme Court clearly stated that the judgment in those cases could not be used as precedent in other cases. All the arguments were refuted by the prosecutor.
The prosecutor informed the court that on 16-17 February 2020, he was present at the secret meeting where protests were planned during the visit of then-US President Donald Trump to escalate the protest against CAA. Several WhatsApp groups namely DPSG, JCC, MSJ and Pinjra Tod among others were working on the same line. In the DPSG group, one Owais Sultan Khan repeatedly talked about plans of instigating violence and discussions that were held at the secret meeting.
The group remained silent for three days and a meeting took place on 20-21 Feb 2020 at Chand Bagh and then on 22-23 Feb 2020 which was attended by Salim Malik along with other accused. They discussed violence, finances, arranging weapons, petrol bombs etc “to be procured for killing of people and arsoning of property and destruction of CCTV.” The prosecution also mentioned that Tahir Hussain funded the protests.
On 23rd February 2020, Bheem Army came out in support of Bharat Bandh and staged a protest from Chand Bagh to Rajghat. The police intervened and dispersed them. The roads were then blocked by Saman Siddiqui, Saleem Khan and Salim Malik along with others. The protesters raised slogans such as “Lekar range Azadi” and “Nara-e-Takbir Allah-hu-Akbar” while indulging in acts of violence.
On 24th Feb 2020, Salim Malik was present at the protest side along with the other accused. On that day, he gave the divisive speeches that escalated the situation. One of the witnesses informed the police that on 23rd Feb 2020, he overheard one Athar that the time to burn Delhi down had come and assured him there would not be a shortage of money. “Their objective was to kill at least 100-200,” the witness said.
In view of the evidence provided by the prosecutor and statements of the witnesses recorded during the investigation, the court said in the judgment that, “we find that the accusation made against the appellant make out a prima facie true‟ case against him. Consequently, embargo created under Section 43-D(5) of UAPA, automatically gets attracted.”
The court added, “In view of the bar provided under Section 45 D (5) of UAPA, we do not find any merit in the present appeal and the same is accordingly dismissed, while making it clear that any observation made hereinabove shall not be construed as an expression on the merits of the case and the learned Trial Court, while deciding the charges, shall not be influenced, either way, by any observation made herein above.”
Disclosure statement of Salim Malik
In his disclosure statement, Salim Malik confessed to orchestrating and participating in violent protests against CAA and NRC. The statement was recorded on 28th June 2020. It unveiled a sinister plot that unfolded over several months starting from December 2019 when CAA was enacted. As per Salim’s statement, inflammatory messages were shared on social media to instil fear among Muslims about the implications of CAA and NRC. Various religious leaders, opposition leaders, Malik and his accomplices including DS Bindra, Suleman Siddiqui and others seized upon the unrest to organize protests in Chand Bagh.
Initially, the protest was centered around a community kitchen but it swiftly turned into a platform for incendiary speeches and anti-government rhetoric. Salim admitted to actively participating in planning meetings where strategies to escalate the protests were discussed.
He provided details of the procurement and distribution of weapons such as sticks, stones, petrol bombs, and even acid, to use violence to pressure the government into repealing the CAA. He confessed to his role in inciting violence, targeting both law enforcement officials and civilians, and causing widespread destruction of public and private property.
The timeline provided in Malik’s statement aligns with the events leading up to the violent protests that erupted in Delhi in late February 2020. Traffic disruptions, stone-pelting incidents, and inflammatory speeches culminated in widespread rioting. People lost their lives and extensive damage to the properties, both private and public took place.
