Muzaffarnagar riots: Court acquits 10 for lack of evidence in murder case

Muzaffarnagar: A court here has acquitted 10 people accused of killing a man during the communal riots in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts in 2013 due to lack of evidence.

Additional District Sessions Judge Anjani Kumar Singh acquitted Gaurav, Amarpal, Rocky, Ratan, Dinesh, Yogesh, Abhishek, Roobi, Kapil Kumar and Manoj Kumar, saying prosecution has failed to prove its story.

The order was passed on September 26 and made available two days later.

Complainant Imrana had lodged an FIR with the local police and alleged that her husband Ashu was beaten to death by rioters when they were going to a bus stand on a scooter during riots at Phugana village in the district on August 8, 2013.

According to the prosecution, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) had filed a charge sheet against 11 people and one Sachin died during pendency of case.

Lawyer Shoraj Singh Malik said during the hearing two witnesses, including the complainant Imrana, and Wakila, the mother of deceased Ashu, turned hostile and did not support the prosecution's story.

More than 60 people were killed and over 40,000 people displaced during the communal riots of 2013 in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts.