Delhi Police files chargesheet against Deep Sidhu, others in Republic Day violence case
New Delhi, May 21: Nearly four months after the violence at Red Fort on the Republic Day, Delhi Police has filed a voluminous chargesheet against actor-activist Deep Sidhu and 15 others in connection with the case.
On January 26, protesting farmers clashed with police during the tractor rally against three farm laws and stormed into the Red Fort, injuring scores of policemen.
The Delhi Police Crime Branch, which is tasked with investigating the case, filed a 3,224-page-long final report before Metropolitan Magistrate Sahil Monga on May 17 and sought prosecution of 16 accused, including Sidhu.
According to the police, 13 out of 16 accused, including Sidhu, Iqbal Singh and Mohinder Singh Khalsa, are out on bail while other three namely Maninder Singh, Khempreet Singh and Jabarjang Singh are still in judicial custody.
Police sources said they may file a supplementary chargesheet if more evidence comes up during the course of investigation in the case.
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Gajendra Singh Nagar will hear the matter on the point of cognisance of the chargesheet on May 28, as per the court sources.
Sidhu, who was accused of being the key conspirator of the violence, was arrested on February 9. The police had also accused him of fuelling the chaos at the Red fort.
The Delhi Police had told the court that it has electronic evidence to show that Sidhu entered the Red Fort with supporters carrying lathis and flags and provoked the violence.
Sidhu is facing charges of rioting, attempt to murder, criminal conspiracy, dacoity, culpable homicide among various other sections of the Indian Penal Code. He was in jail for over two months and released on bail on April 17.
Besides Sidhu, police have also mentioned the name of Iqbal Singh, who was doing a Facebook Live session in which he allegedly instigated the protesters.
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Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
