Delhi Riots: Delhi High Court seeks response from State in bail plea of man claiming to be schizophrenic
The Delhi High Court informed the Delhi government and police on Friday of a request for bail from Mohd, who was charged with the Delhi riots. Salman, who claimed to have paranoid schizophrenia (Mohd. Salman vs. State of NCT of Delhi).
Sole Judge Subramonium Prasad requested a response from the Delhi Police and also requested a status report.
“Notification of issuance. Also put on record the status report on this matter ”, said the court.
The matter will be re-judged on October 21.
The petitioner, a junk dealer residing in Seelampur, Delhi and the sole breadwinner for a family of seven, was arrested in Khajuri Khas in February 2020 and has been in prison for more than a year in connection with the murder of three people during the riots that North East Delhi in February 2020 shook hostility between religious groups) of the Indian Penal Code.
In his guilty plea, Salman stated that he had acute paranoid schizophrenia, which caused him to hallucinate, suicidal thoughts, and disorganized speech.
“The petitioner was diagnosed as early as 2011 (in his teens) and for more than 10 years he has been dealing with the help and constant support of his loving family, who regularly brought him to the institute, with his medical illness of Human Behavior & Allied Sciences (IHBAS
Attorney Tanveer Ahmed Mir appeared on behalf of the defendant, arguing that Salman had witnessed nine separate cases.
“Furthermore, there is no evidence against him,” Mir submitted.
It was also alleged that Salman was last seen time by his doctor shortly before his arrest and that he needs ongoing treatment and strong antipsychotic drugs, as well as family support.
The plea highlighted the need for greater care and, above all, hospitalization.
It has also been alleged that Salman was wrongly accused in this case on the basis of "random video images" overlooking the street where his house is located and where he was allegedly identified as part of a mob that was captured in the images.
"It would not be inappropriate to mention here that the relevant video material does not have to be made available to the petitioner at the end of the investigating authorities in violation of the provisions of § 207 StPO," the petition says.