Jamshedpur Communal Clash 2023| 'Can't Ascertain Which Community Was The Aggressor': High Court Grants Bail To 42 Accused

The Jharkhand High Court last week granted bail to 42 accused booked in connection with the April 2023 clashes which broke out between members of two communities in the State's Jamshedpur district over the alleged desecration of a religious flag.

The bench of Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad and Justice Subhash Chand found that none of the appellants were apprehended at the spot and the role assigned to the named accused and also the unknown persons was general and omnibus. The Court also added that at this stage it cannot be ascertained who was the aggressor between both the communities.

Though the Court did observe that it was evident from the evidence collected by the I.O. that the accused persons of both Hindu and Muslim communities were pelting stones at each other, whereby police personnel sustained injury and their vehicles were also damaged, however, it added, the nature of the injury was not grievous and no injury report was put on the record or the statement of the doctor in regard to conducting the medical examination of the injured.

Against this backdrop, the Court quashed and set aside the different orders passed by the Additional Sessions Judge-II, East Singhbhum, Jamshedpur rejecting the bail application of all 42 accused.

The Communal clashes

Communal clashes broke out in Jamshedpur's Shastri Nagar area on April 8 after a Ram Navami flag was allegedly found near a temple with pieces of meat in it. As per a report published by The Hindu, the next day, the members of a particular community held protests and demanded police action against the accused within 24 hours.

Thereafter, on April 9, a temple committee took place in the evening during which over 100 people, whose faces were covered, started throwing stones at the committee members.

Later on, about 200 Hindus at the Jatadhari Shiv Hanuman Mandir and about 1000 Muslims, at Shashtrinagar Block Mosque armed with lathi, danda and swords were found raising slogans and pelting stones at each other.

Further Section 144 Cr.P.C. proclamation was made and announced in the area by the local authorities and the mob gathered there was declared as an unlawful assembly and all were asked to disperse but the mob became more rash and they started throwing bricks and stones on the police personnel and Magistrates.

From the side of the mosque as well, four rounds of fire were opened and bottle bombs were also hurled upon the police personnel and Magistrates. When the Rapid Action Force reached there and they opened nine rounds of tear gas, the mob was raising slogans of Allah Ho Akbar and Jai Sri Ram.

The Magistrates and police personnel got injured in this incident and the public and government property were also damaged. Allegedly, in this occurrence, some political and social activists were also involved, who under a criminal conspiracy in order to abet the communal enmity have got this occurrence committed.

A First Information Report was lodged against 119 named accused from both Hindu and Muslim communities and against unknown 200 Hindus and 1000 Muslims.

In the FIR, it has been stated that the persons of the Muslim side, who were in number of 1000 to 1200 had congregated at the mosque and all were armed with deadly weapons like lathi, danda and sword. As such, it were the persons of the Muslim community, who were armed with deadly weapons, had committed the riot after having formed the unlawful assembly and they wanted to attack the persons of the Hindu community who were only 200 in number and all were empty-handed.

The aggressors in the commission of the offence were the persons of the Muslim community and the only allegation in the FIR was the pelting of stones from the persons of both communities to each other.

Against the backdrop of these allegations, when the accused persons from both communities moved the High Court after the rejection of their bail pleas by the Jamshedpur Court, the Court noted that though the CCTV footage of the place of occurrence was mentioned in the case diary but none was identified on the basis of the CCTV footage. 

The Court also noted that only the presence of the appellants had been identified at the place of occurrence, but the role attributed to these appellants along with other unknown accused who were more than 1500 of both communities, were general and omnibus.

The Court observed that names of some leaders of BJP and VHP had also come in the statements of the witnesses alleging that they addressed the mob in order to provoke communal enmity and even the police personnel also gave the same kind of statement, however, the Court further noted that despite the heavy police force, none of the so called leaders of BJP and VHP were apprehended at the spot by the police; while addressing at the place of occurrence.

Against the backdrop of these facts as noted by the Court, the Court thought it fit to grant bail to accused persons to be released on bail on furnishing bail bonds of Rs.25,000/-

Case title - Abhay Singh vs. The State of Jharkhand along with connected matters

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Jha) 23

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