Publicise names, addresses of those arrested in riots, activists write to Delhi Police Commissioner

Human rights activists on Sunday wrote to the Delhi Police Commissioner demanding that the names and addresses of those arrested in connection with the violence in the national capital be publicised as mandated by the law.

In a letter, signed by activists Anjali Bharadwaj, co-convenor of the National Campaign for People's Right to Information, advocate Prashant Bhushan, CPI leader Annie Raja, Amrita Johri among others, said Section 41-C of the CrPC mandatorily requires that a police control room be established in all districts and section 41-C(2) demands that the names and addresses of all persons arrested be displayed on the notice board outside the control room.

"Compliance with Section 41-C and providing information regarding details of those arrested and in custody is necessary to provide families of those persons with clarity about their whereabouts to ensure that the correct information is reaching all concerned and their suffering is not worsened by the spread of misinformation," the letter posted on Twitter by Bharadwaj said.

"Despite the express mandate of law, the names and addresses of all arrested persons are not being displayed at the Police Control Room in North-East and Shahdra districts and police stations falling within the area," it said.

The letter also stated that the police has failed to adequately publicise these details of arrested persons during previous incidents of unrest in Delhi over the past months as well.

"In the present circumstances, as such clarity will go a long way towards dispelling rumours and misinformation that are plaguing the lives of those affected. We appeal to you to ensure compliance with this legal requirement and continue towards restoring normalcy in the region," it added.

The violence in Jaffrabad, Maujpur, Babarpur, Chand Bagh, Shiv Vihar, Bhajan Pura, Yamuna Vihar and Mustafabad areas of northeast Delhi claimed at least 42 lives and left over 200 injured.

A total of 885 people have been detained and arrested, while 167 FIRs have been registered.