A Delhi court has refused to direct the police to forthwith supply of a copy of the video footage to advocate Mehmood Pracha, who is representing some of the accused in the north-east Delhi riots cases, in connection with the search conducted at the advocate’s residence in December.

Pracha had approached the sessions court against an order passed by a magisterial court, in an order passed on December 27, directing the Delhi Police to preserve the video footage, reports PTI. 

The Delhi court, in a hearing on Tuesday, observed that the magisterial court had neither denied nor conclusively determined Pracha’s prayer for the supply of video footage.

“Evidently, the prayer regarding the supply of video footage has not been disposed off by the Trial Court and the impugned order is purely an interlocutory in nature… I concur with additional public prosecutor that the instant revision petition is legally not maintainable. In view of the above discussions, the present revision petition stands dismissed,” Additional Sessions Judge Dharmender Rana said.

Duty Magistrate Udhav Kumar Jain had not passed any order on whether to hand over a copy of the video to Pracha, and had directed his staff to preserve the whole video footage of the searched. He had asked to place the video footage before the court concerned for necessary orders.

Only directions for preserving the video footage was “deemed necessary and the concerned court can take a call on supplying the video footage to the applicant Pracha at an appropriate stage,” Jain had said. 

The court concerned is scheduled to hear the matter further on January 12.

The video footage was submitted by the Investigating Officer in response to court’s earlier order.

Pracha had earlier submitted that a search was conducted at his office from 12 noon on December 24 and till 03:00 AM on December 25 approximately and according to the law, the IO should have intimated forthwith the search and the seized articles to the Magistrate concerned.

He submitted that, however, the same was not done and therefore, he filed an application in that regard.

He further submitted that the entire search was videographed as per the court order and that he was entitled to a copy of the video footage.

Delhi police had alleged that 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.

The advocate has been representing various accused and complainants in the violence in north-east Delhi.

Several cases were registered over the northeast Delhi violence, in which at least 53 people were killed and several others were injured.