A Delhi court has sentenced former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain to two years in prison for abetment to rioting in a case related to the February 2020 northeast Delhi riots. The court also imposed a fine of ₹10,000 on Hussain, who is already serving a life sentence in the murder case of Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer Ankit Sharma.
Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh of the Karkardooma court said that making one’s premises available to rioters was a serious offence, even if the prosecution had not established the accused’s direct participation in the violence.
“The act attributed to the convict, and for which he stands convicted, is that of providing his house to the rioters for their use,” the court observed.
Rejecting the argument that the absence of proven direct participation reduced the seriousness of the offence, the judge said, “The mere fact that the prosecution did not prove the active participation of the convict in the riot, does not dilute the gravity of his conduct, for the hand that guides is as guilty, if not more, as the hand that acts.”
12 Co-Accused Acquitted
The court acquitted all 12 co-accused in the case of the charges against them. The accused included Mohammad Shadab, Shah Alam, Riyasat Ali, Gulfam, Rashid, Mohammad Rihan, Mohammad Abid, Arshad Qayyum, Irshad Ahmed, Deepak Singh Saini, Navneet and Mehak Singh.
The case involved allegations of rioting, property damage, arson and criminal conspiracy in connection with the 2020 northeast Delhi violence.
The two-year sentence in this case is separate from the life imprisonment Hussain is already serving following his conviction in the Ankit Sharma murder case.
Second Conviction Linked to 2020 Delhi Riots
This is Hussain’s second conviction in a case arising from the 2020 riots. In July, a Delhi court convicted him and four others in connection with the killing of IB officer Ankit Sharma.
Sharma’s body was recovered from a drain in the Chand Bagh area on February 26, 2020, after he went missing the previous day. His father, Ravinder Kumar, had alleged in his complaint that Hussain and others were involved in his son’s killing.
Hussain was suspended by the AAP after his name surfaced in the murder case.
Court Examined Evidence From Hussain’s Building
According to the judgment in the murder case, forensic investigators who inspected Hussain’s building in Khajuri Khas on February 28, 2020, recovered stones, bricks, a catapult, petrol bombs, glass bottles stuffed with cloth, bullets and burnt articles from the terrace and surrounding area.
The court recorded allegations that the building was used by rioters to throw stones and petrol and acid bombs during the violence.
The judgment also referred to witness statements identifying Hussain and other accused in connection with the violence. However, the latest sentencing order concerns the separate rioting case in which Hussain was convicted for providing his premises to rioters.
2020 Northeast Delhi Riots Left 53 Dead
The northeast Delhi riots broke out in February 2020 amid clashes between supporters and opponents of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The violence left 53 people dead, injured several others and caused extensive damage to homes, shops and other properties.
