Court acquits 11 accused of violence during Ram Navami procession in MP's Khargone in 2022
The Khargone district court of Madhya Pradesh has acquitted 11 persons accused in the 2022 Ram Navami violence case. The court cited that the prosecution failed to prove the charges against them.
In a verdict delivered on Monday,July 27, Khargone's Fourth Additional Sessions Judge, Mukesh Nath, acquitted Ibadat Ali, Sadiq Khan, Abdullah Khan, Sahab alias Shahib, Sher Yar, Faisal Khan, Azam Khan, Shabbir Khan, Imran Ali, Mushtaq Ali and Razik Ali of rioting, arson and other charges.
The prosecution said on Wednesday that during the Ram Navami violence on April 10, 2022, the accused hurled stones, torched and vandalised several houses in the Bhatwadi neighbourhood. Some of them were also accused of stealing CCTV DVRs and jewellery.
The court said in its judgment that the prosecution presented 13 witnesses, of whom eight could not identify any of the accused.
The court said the statements of the remaining witnesses also contained contradictions, and added that it is not the number of witnesses, but the quality of their evidence that is important.
The court also found the identification testimony of key witness Vaishnavi Jain unreliable.
It noted that an identification parade was not conducted and her statement was recorded 51 days after the incident, for which the prosecution could not provide a satisfactory reason.
A government official said that more than 20 other cases related to the Ram Navami violence are still pending in various courts in the district.
During the communal clashes in Khargone, mobs engaged in stone-pelting, arson and property damage across neighborhoods like Bhatwadi. At least 24 people, including six policemen, were injured in the violence. A curfew was in place for over three weeks in Khargone city following the violence.
