Police raid on Delhi riots advocate raises alarm bells among lawyers

By Dilip -

On Thursday, the Delhi Police’s Special Cell raided the office of Mehmood Pracha, a lawyer representing several people who are accused in the February Delhi riots. The raid, which lasted for 15 hours, relates to alleged cases of fraud. This includes allegations that Pracha had forged signatures on a notarised document as well as instigated a man to depose falsely in a riots case, reported the Print.

Court asks for footage of police raid on lawyer

The riots in February left 53 people dead, many injured and thousands more affected. They were the most serious Hindu-Muslim clashes in seven decades. The drastic police action has raised serious questions among Indian lawyers about the breach of attorney-client privilege – the idea that communication between a person and his lawyer is confidential. By accessing computers used by Pracha, the Delhi Police can potentially access communication between Pracha and the clients he represents in the Delhi riots cases….

Whilst the state becomes increasingly imperceptible from the outside, it simultaneously demands full transparency and information on the part of all others. To be in full view of the state is necessary for the determination of access to, or exclusion from, its archives and control...(from Submarine State)

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