Overview
- Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh said there was no reliable evidence placing Kumar at the scene or showing instigation, conspiracy or membership of an unlawful assembly.
- In a detailed order, the court noted many witnesses were hearsay or named Kumar only after three decades and warned that relying on such identification could lead to a travesty.
- The court stressed that prior convictions cannot lower the evidentiary bar in this case, stating that each offence requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
- The proceedings stemmed from two FIRs revisited by a Special Investigation Team in 2015; murder and conspiracy charges were earlier dropped, and Kumar had been discharged in the Vikaspuri murder count in 2023.
- Kumar remains in Tihar Jail serving life sentences from separate 2018 and 2025 riot-related convictions, and victims’ representatives said they will challenge the acquittal in a higher court.