The Delhi Police have arrested 600 people in connection with the northeast Delhi violence which erupted on Sunday while 130 charge-sheets have been registered at various police stations, a Delhi Police spokesperson M S Randhawa said yesterday.
The spokesperson said that “28 charge-sheets have been registered in the cases in which illegal possession of weapons was reported. The investigation revealed that around 600 people have been detained and all are being questioned.”
The Delhi Police appealed to the people to maintain peace and ignore rumours.
Randhawa said police were collecting evidence, reviewing video footage of the violence. “The detentions were important to bring the situation under control,” Randhawa told reporters, adding that there had been no new reports of violence.
The clashes began over a citizenship law that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government introduced in December providing a path to Indian citizenship for six religious groups from neighbouring countries — but not Muslims.
Critics of the government however blamed this week’s violence on members of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which was trounced in local Delhi elections at the beginning of the month.
The BJP has denied the allegations.
The Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) has condemned the violence against Muslims and vandalism of mosques and Muslim-owned properties.
Holding the BJP and the RSS responsible for the violence in Delhi, Congress leader in the Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, yesterday said the disturbances have sullied India’s image worldwide.
Chowdhury came down heavily on Union Home Minister Amit Shah for accusing the opposition parties of spreading falsehood and fuelling riots in the name of Citizenship Amendment Act protests.
“People of India know that the BJP and RSS are responsible for the riots. So, however much Shah tries to cover up their crime, he won’t succeed. Since the day the ruling party at the centre kicked off its campaign backing CAA, NRC and NPR, they have only targeted the minorities. So people know who is responsible for the violence,” said Chowdhury, who led a candlelight vigil in the city in protest against the Delhi violence.
To buttress his point, he referred to the Delhi High Court asking why charge-sheets had not been registered against BJP leaders who acted as agent provocateurs.
“Because of the chain of events in Delhi, India’s image has been sullied worldwide. The central government, and particularly home minister Amit Shah, have to take responsibility for this. So Shah’s resignation is among our demands,” he said.
Security personnel patrol a street following sectarian riots at Shiv Vihar in New Delhi yesterday.
