Wed Feb 26 19:38:48 UTC 2025: ## Delhi Court Acquits Man in 2020 Riot-Related Murder Case
**New Delhi, February 27, 2025** – A Delhi court has acquitted a man, Mohammad Shahnawaz, in a murder case linked to the 2020 northeast Delhi riots. Shahnawaz was accused of murdering Dilbar Negi, whose half-charred body was discovered in a Chaman Park warehouse on February 26, 2020. Police alleged Shahnawaz set the warehouse ablaze, killing Negi.
However, the court, in its February 24th order, cited inconsistencies in eyewitness testimonies as the basis for the acquittal. Crucially, the court noted that Shahnawaz’s name was absent from the initial First Information Report (FIR) filed on February 28, 2020, and was not mentioned by witnesses. The judge highlighted a discrepancy, questioning why the warehouse owner, a key prosecution witness, failed to mention Shahnawaz’s name to the police during the FIR registration despite allegedly knowing his identity since the day of the incident. The court deemed the prosecution’s case insufficient to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
First Piper 