'The violence in Delhi has largely been concentrated in areas that the BJP managed to win in the recent Assembly elections on the back of a vicious and polarising campaign led by Union home minister Amit Shah. Five of the eight seats the BJP won in the 70-member Assembly fall in northeast Delhi where rioting took place. The Delhi Northeast seat is represented in the Lok Sabha by the BJP’s state president, Manoj Tiwari...'
'A journalist with a Hindi news portal alleged on Wednesday that he was assaulted while filming in a riot-hit area and forced to drop his pants to check if he was circumcised. Susheel Manav, a journalist with Jan Chowk, said he was riding pillion on a motorcycle driven by theatre person Awadhu Azad at Lane 7 of northeast Delhi’s Maujpur when they were stopped. Lane 7 was where a head constable was killed by rioters on Monday...'
'An accused in the Pulwama attack conspiracy case has been granted bail on account of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) failing to file a chargesheet within the prescribed statutory period. An NIA court in Delhi's Patiala House pronounced this order on February 18, 2020, noting that the accused, Yusuf Chopan, was entitled to statutory bail. The application for bail was moved on the grounds that Chopan had been in custody for around 180 days and the investigating agency is yet to file a chargesheet despite the time for doing so having elapsed.
'A Bangladeshi student at West Bengal’s Visva-Bharati University has been asked to leave India for taking part in “anti-government activities” after she posted pictures of anti-Citizenship Act protests on her campus, reported The Telegraph on Thursday. The student, Afsara Anika Meem, a first-year student at the university, was trolled on social media after she posted the photos. One of her friends claimed that around 250 social media posts described her as an “anti-national” even though she did not participate in the demonstrations.
'BJP general secretary BL Santhosh on Thursday said Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders’s reaction to the violence in northeast Delhi was compelling “us to play a role in Presidential elections.” Sanders had shared the Washington Post’s report on the violence and slammed US President Donald Trump’s response, calling it “a failure of leadership on human rights.”...'
'Enumerators tasked with carrying out surveys for various state and central agencies are facing a tough time dealing with Hyderabad residents in the wake of protests against the amended Citizenship Law and fears over the National Register of Citizens (NRC). On Wednesday afternoon, as seen in a video that has gone viral on social media, two women surveyors could be seen stopped and questioned by a resident in the Malakpet area. “Don’t you know what is the prevailing situation in the city? Protests are happening all across in connection with NPR, NRC, and CAA.
'The proceedings in the riots case in Delhi High Court offer a rich study on how the composition of bench can influence the result of a case, and can even produce diametrically different approaches. The petition filed by activist Harsh Mander seeking independent probe into Delhi riots and also registration of FIR on allegations of hate speeches by politicians was heard by a bench comprising Justices Dr S Muralidhar and Talwant Singh yesterday. Today, the case was considered by another bench comprising Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar.
'Despite the Karnataka High Court observing last week that it is unethical and illegal for lawyers to pass resolutions against representing anyone in court, a 19-year-old girl and three engineering students from Kashmir, who are accused in separate sedition cases, are facing an uphill task in getting legal representation... With no representation, Amulya’s bail plea was not taken up by the magistrate on Monday and a request for police custody also remained in limbo.
'“Our children’s admit cards had not even been sent,” said a tearful Neetu Chaudhary, as she surveyed the charred remains of Arun Modern Public Senior Secondary School. “They have destroyed all records from 1986.” The school was established in 1986. It is located in Brijpuri, at the entrance to Mustafabad, a locality in North East Delhi which saw widespread violence and arson on February 25. According to Kasim Zaid, the school’s physical education teacher, it was set alight around 4-5 pm in the evening of February 25...'
'...After walking for about 200 meters, I saw a huge group of men standing in a corner and listening to a pundit, dressed in saffron clothes. When I got close, I clearly heard him say, "Musalmano ko jaisey hi dekho waisey hi maaro, upar se order aa gaye hain,” after which he left in a hurry. Curious and shocked, I asked one of the men who he was. "Paas ki mandir ke pundit hain ye, aap kaun hain?" "I live here inside these lanes," I said. "Let us drop you inside," they said. After telling them that I will manage on my own, I escaped and started walking inside one of the lanes of Maujpur.
