New Delhi: A Delhi court on Friday sentenced former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain and the other convicts to life imprisonment for the murder of Intelligence Bureau (IB) staffer Ankit Sharma during the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots, describing the killing as a grave crime that had “shaken society”.
Pronouncing the sentence, Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Praveen Singh of Karkardooma Court observed that the incident was of an extremely serious nature and had compelled society to reflect on how such a brutal crime could take place. Holding that the offence warranted the maximum punishment short of death, the court awarded life imprisonment to all those convicted in the case.
The sentencing follows the conviction of Hussain and the co-accused earlier this month for their role in the killing of the 26-year-old Intelligence Bureau employee. Hussain was convicted of murder, rioting and other offences, but acquitted of the charge of criminal conspiracy.
Ankit Sharma went missing during the communal violence that engulfed Northeast Delhi in February 2020. His body was later recovered from a drain near Chand Bagh, with the post-mortem report recording multiple injuries. The case emerged as one of the most prominent criminal prosecutions arising out of the riots, which claimed 53 lives and left hundreds injured.
During the sentencing hearing earlier this week, the Delhi Police had sought the death penalty for Hussain and four other convicts, describing the murder as “cold-blooded” and arguing that it fell within the category of the “rarest of rare” cases.
Appearing for the prosecution, Special Public Prosecutor Madhukar Pandey told the court that Sharma had been abducted, repeatedly assaulted and brutally killed. He argued that the victim had sustained 51 injuries, including 18 inflicted by sharp-edged weapons, demonstrating the extreme brutality of the attack. The prosecution also contended that the crime could not be viewed in isolation but had to be considered in the broader context of the communal riots that rocked Northeast Delhi in February 2020.
The defence opposed the demand for capital punishment, arguing that the case did not satisfy the legal threshold for awarding the death sentence. Counsel appearing for Hussain submitted that there was no evidence establishing a criminal conspiracy and pointed to his conduct during the trial. The defence also cited his family circumstances, stating that he is the sole earning member with a wife and three children.
After considering the submissions of both sides, the court rejected the prosecution’s plea for the death penalty and instead imposed life imprisonment on all the convicts.
The detailed sentencing order is awaited.
