Red Fort violence: Court grants bail to a man accused of assaulting cop

Khempreet Singh, who was accused of attacking a police officer with a spear during the Red Fort riots, was given relief after the court determined that there was no clear evidence against him. A Delhi court on Saturday granted bail to a man accused of assaulting a police officer on duty with a spear during
 
Red Fort violence: Court grants bail to a man accused of assaulting cop

Khempreet Singh, who was accused of attacking a police officer with a spear during the Red Fort riots, was given relief after the court determined that there was no clear evidence against him.

A Delhi court on Saturday granted bail to a man accused of assaulting a police officer on duty with a spear during this year’s Republic Day riots at the Red Fort.

During a tractor march against the three agricultural laws on January 26, angry farmers clashed with police and rushed into the Red Fort, raising religious flags on its domes and wounding dozens of police officers.

Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau granted him relief, saying the prosecution’s pictures and videos aren’t very clear and accused Khempreet Singh can’t be seen hitting anyone in them.

The court stated, “The charge sheet against the accused has already been submitted, and he is no longer necessary for inquiry,” adding that an accused is “deemed innocent unless proven guilty.”

She went on to say that the majority of the charges in the case are bailable, and 14 of the 18 people detained, including the key conspirators Deep Sandhu and Iqbal Singh, have already been released on bail.

The court also cited the observations in the Delhi High Court’s bail judgment in the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) case brought against Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita, and Asif Iqbal Tanha, three student activists.

“At a time when society is polarised and fractured across various lines, and ideology has reached a vanishing point,” ASJ Lau noted, “the Delhi High Court observed that the court will do everything within its mandate to prevent the misuse of the law and alleviate the anxiety that has come to surround these individuals.”

According to the police, accused Khempreet Singh entered the Red Fort with an unruly throng through the Lahore Gate, waved the spear from the ramparts, and violently battered and assaulted the on-duty policeman.

Defending the accused, lawyers Jaspreet Singh Rai and Jagdeep Singh Dhillon told the court that there isn’t a shred of evidence against him and that he is being unfairly implicated in the case.