Delhi court permits riot-accused to write DU exam in jail

Additional sessions judge Vinod Yadav directed the jail superintendent to facilitate Aman Kashyap, a BA degree student of DU’s School of Open Learning, to write the examination at the jail complex after he filed a plea through advocate Rajeev Kumar Tiwari, seeking interim bail to appear for the examination.

A Delhi court on Thursday granted permission to a 22-year-old student of Delhi University (DU), one of seven men accused of murdering a man and rioting in north-east Delhi in February, to appear for his final-year open-book examination (OBE).

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Additional sessions judge Vinod Yadav directed the jail superintendent to facilitate Aman Kashyap, a BA degree student of DU’s School of Open Learning, to write the examination at the jail complex after he filed a plea through advocate Rajeev Kumar Tiwari, seeking interim bail to appear for the examination.

The Delhi University is conducting OBE from August 10-31 for the third-year students.

On August 11, Kashyap, through his counsel Rajeev Tiwari and advocate Vimal Tiwari, sought interim bail stating that he needed to appear for the examination. They contended that Kashyap had been falsely implicated.

In response to the court’s query for a status report, the superintendent of the Mandoli jail informed the court that the investigating officer had confirmed that Kashyap had to write an exam on August 14. The superintendent said that they would facilitate him to do so.

The crime branch had, on June 25, filed a charge sheet in a Delhi court regarding the murder of 22-year-old Monis, a daily wager, who was waylaid on Brijpuri Road and beaten to death by a mob on February 25.

The mob had also set several private and public properties on fire. Investigators arrested and charged seven persons.

“All seven of them have been charged for rioting, murder, arson and criminal conspiracy,” said a senior police officer associated with the probe, requesting anonymity.

Kashyap was arrested on April 1. Advocate Rajeev Tiwari, Kashyap’s counsel, said that his client was arrested on the testimony of a planted witness and he would soon file a discharge application in the court.

“My client has been arrested based on the statement of an eyewitness Shashi Kant, who allegedly saw the incident take place from his home situated quite a distance away. However, even if he had been on the road, nothing beyond 800 metres would have been visible. Also, the road is curved. There is no chance of my client being involved in the murder,” he said.