Delhi Police on Friday filed chargesheets in two separate cases in which two brothers were killed in the riots that broke out in north-east Delhi in February this year.
Both the chargesheets — for various offences, including murder, criminal conspiracy and rioting — were filed before Metropolitan Magistrate Richa Parihar.
Among the accused are Pankaj Sharma, Lokesh, Sumit, and Ankit.
A senior police officer said the men allegedly stopped motorists at random during the violence, and after identifying the religion of the victims, killed them.
The first case is in connection with the killing of Aqil Ahmed; and 10 people have been arrested. The chargesheet was filed under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including Sections 302 (murder), 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 147 and 148 (rioting), 395 (dacoity), 210 (destruction of evidence) — attracting maximum punishment of death penalty.
The second case was registered in connection with the killing of Musharaff; and nine people have been arrested.
Both the victims were brothers, said the Delhi Police Crime Branch.
Forty-year-old Aqil was returning to his home in New Mustafabad on February 26 around 9.30 p.m. when he was waylaid and murdered by a mob at Jal Board Puliya in Bhagirathi Vihar, the police said in its final report.
His body was thrown in the Johripur drain. He was a car painter and mechanic, and is survived by his wife and four children.
During investigation in the second case, the police found that on February 25 at about 8.00 p.m., rioters disconnected the electricity in Bhagirathi Vihar.
Dragged out into the street
In the darkness, the mob attacked Musharraf’s house in C-Block. They dragged him out on to the street and bludgeoned him to death, and then threw his body into the open drain. He used to work as an auto driver and a labourer. He is survived by his wife and three children.
Neither of the crime spots were covered by CCTV cameras. Based upon source information, the police said that a group of “Hindu” men had joined hands on February 25 and 26, post the riots on February 24 in which “Muslim” mobs had committed violence on the “Hindu community”.
The group was identified and some of the members were picked up.
During questioning, it was revealed that they had created a WhatsApp group, which had 125 members.
Subsequently, eyewitnesses were identified and examined. Bases on oral evidence and the chat in the WhatsApp group, the identity of the perpetrators was fixed, the report said.
According to the police, the rioting started from Kardampuri, Maujpur, Chand Bagh, and thereafter at Shiv Vihar Tiraha near DRP School and Rajdhani Public School on February 26.
The next day at about 9.40 a.m., three bodies were recovered from the drain in Johripur. On the same day at about 4.00 p.m. another body of a “Muslim person” was recovered near the drain.
Subsequently, four FIRs were registered at Gokalpuri police station.