NEW DELHI: The Delhi police has filed a charge sheet before a court on Sunday against six persons in a case of alleged murder of an 85-year-old woman, who choked to death when her house was torched during the communal violence in northeast Delhi in February.
The crime branch filed the charge sheet before Metropolitan Magistrate Rakesh Kumar Rampuri against six persons who were allegedly part of a mob that set fire to Akbari Begum’s house leading to her death. The court has put up the matter for consideration of the charge sheet on June 21.
The charge sheet was filed against Arun Kumar, Varun Kumar, Vishal Singh, Ravi Kumar, Prakash Chand, and Suraj Singh for offences of rioting (147 an 148), unlawful assembly (149), murder (302), attempt to murder (307), dacoity with murder (396), mischief by fire (436), trespass (455), causing disappearance of evidence (201), disobedience of public servant’s order (188) and common intention (34) under the Indian Penal Code. All the accused are in judicial custody. The offences entail a maximum punishment of death penalty.
The crime branch has filed 13 charge sheets till now in cases related to northeast Delhi riots. It was investigating 59 cases related to murder and rioting. According to the charge sheet, on February 25, when the mob torched Begum’s house, while other members escaped to the roof, the octogenarian could not reach the rooftop. She subsequently died due to asphyxia (suffocation to inhalation of smoke) and her charred body was found on a folding bed.
(With agency inputs)