Tablighi Jamaat Covid Case: Delhi HC quashes charges, proceedings against 70 members

More than five years since 70 Indians associated with Tablighi Jamaat were accused of spreading COVID19, the Delhi High Court Thursday quashed the charges in 16 FIRs and subsequent proceedings, including the chargesheets in the cases.While the detailed verdict is awaited to be made public, Justice Neena Bansal Krishna pronounced in the open court that the proceedings stand quashed.The 70 accused named across 16 FIRs were charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including criminal conspiracy, for allegedly housing foreign nationals in different mosques during the pandemic between March 24, 2020, and March 30, 2020. 195 foreign nationals were named in the FIRs, however, in most chargesheets, they were not named as accused, or the cognisance of the chargesheet was refused by the magistrate court on principles of double jeopardy.