Former Aam Aadmi Party councillor Tahir Hussain was part of an unlawful assembly that was driven by “animus against Hindus” and had the common objective of rioting, looting, arson and attacking members of the Hindu community during the 2020 north-east Delhi riots, Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh of the Karkardooma Courts said in a judgment convicting him and four others for the murder of Intelligence Bureau (IB) staffer Ankit Sharma.
The court on Monday found Hussain, Nazim, Kasim, Javed and Anas guilty on charges of murder, kidnapping with intent to confine, rioting with deadly weapons, unlawful assembly, and promoting enmity between different groups, among other serious charges. Haseen, Firoz, Gulfam, Shoaib Alam, Sameer Khan and Muntazim were acquitted of all charges. The court will hear arguments on the quantum of sentence from July 23.
In a 320-page judgment, the judge noted that the prosecution had proved all charges against Hussain beyond reasonable doubt.
“The prosecution has successfully proved beyond all reasonable doubt that, at the time of the incident, accused Tahir Hussain was a member of a large crowd and unlawful assembly which, with animus against Hindus, had assembled at Chand Bagh Pulia with the common objective of committing rioting, looting, arson and causing damage to the property and persons of members of the Hindu community; and that the members of the assembly knew that, in pursuit of its objectives, death could result and someone could be killed,” the court observed.
The judgment noted that the members of the assembly were heavily armed. It stated that the mob “surrounded and dragged Ankit Sharma towards Chand Bagh Pulia” and thereafter subjected him to a “savage and relentless assault”, resulting in his death. His body was later thrown into a nearby drain.
The case pertains to an FIR registered at the Dayalpur police station on February 26, 2020, on the complaint of Mr. Sharma’s father, Ravinder Kumar, who reported him missing after he failed to return home while out to buy groceries during the riots. Mr. Sharma’s body was later recovered from a drain near Chand Bagh Pulia, and he was declared brought dead at Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital.
The prosecution examined 91 witnesses during the trial and relied on eyewitness accounts, forensic evidence and call detail records to establish its case.
