Delhi Police on Tuesday conducted raids in the office of Supreme Court lawyer, Mehmood Pracha in connection with the North-East Delhi violence.
According to sources, the search was conducted in the Pracha office from 12:30 pm to 5 pm.
In the evening, lawyer Mehmood Pracha moved the Delhi Court urging to issue directions to the investigating officer (IO) and whichever senior officers may be exercising the relevant powers to require the applicant to produce the computer/s they are seeking.
"In view of the foregoing, it is most humbly prayed that the order dated March 2 passed by this Court be modified to the above-referred extent i.e. direct the IO and whichever senior officers as may be exercising the relevant powers to require the applicant to produce the computer/s they are seeking, and the applicant shall himself bring it/them before this Hon'ble Court, whereafter, the IO and other senior officers can extract the concerned documents etc. from it and make their copy in presence of this Hon'ble Court, " Pracha urged in his application.
Pracha submitted that the demand of the Delhi Police for the hard disks of any of the computers of his is absolutely illegal and unjustified especially since the specific documents are already in their possession from the previous exercise (alleged search) itself.
"It is recorded on the video as to what documents etc. was accessed on which computer. The raiding party accessed the E-Mail ID as well and took the concerned documents etc. from there too," the lawyer said.
"Therefore, the insistence on seizing the hard drive is evidently to collect information and data belonging to the clients of the Applicant (completely unconnected to the present case), who, inter-alia include whistleblowers and anti-corruption activists, " read the application.
Pracha said he volunteers to yet again furnish any specific documents sought by the investigation agency, and also re-furnish whatever was taken during the previous exercise.
"Although an actually free and fair investigation would reveal the real truth that the present case is completely baseless and has been instituted with the sole objective of hounding the applicant/accused at the behest of and as a part of a conspiracy involving senior politicians, bureaucrats and even judicial officers, yet, as has been previously been submitted during the hearings in this matter, the applicant is going to the extent of risking self-implication even in derogation of his Fundamental Right only for the sake of protecting the data and information pertaining to his clients and briefs (completely unconnected to the allegations being investigated) which is his bounden duty as an advocate, under the law of the land," the plea added.
Pracha said that he volunteers to himself present the identified computer/s before this Court and the IO may obtain whatever he wishes to, and whatever is permitted by this Court, from the said computer/s, in presence of this Court, "so that the police is not able to play any mischief, and at the same time, it will also ensure that the object of the search warrant is also satisfied".
The court has asked the Delhi Police to file a reply on the plea and listed the matter for further hearing on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Delhi police had alleged that lawyer Mehmood Pracha forged documents and instigated a man to depose falsely in connection with a case related to the violence in north-east Delhi in February this year.
Advocate Mehmood Pracha has been representing various accused and complainants in the violence in north-east Delhi. Various cases were registered over the northeast Delhi violence, in which at least 53 people were killed and several others were injured.
( With inputs from ANI )
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