Former AAP councillor and four others sentenced to life for IB officer's murder
A Delhi court sentenced former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain and four accomplices to life imprisonment for killing Intelligence Bureau officer Ankit Sharma during the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots.
In a high-profile case stemming from the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots, a Delhi court sentenced former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain and four others to life imprisonment for the murder of Intelligence Bureau officer Ankit Sharma. Additional sessions judge Praveen Singh delivered the verdict after hearing detailed arguments on the appropriate quantum of punishment. Prosecutors, led by special public prosecutor Madhukar Pandey, had pressed for the death penalty, citing 51 injuries on Sharma's body and alleging that he was dragged with a cloth tied around his neck before being dumped in a drain.
Hussain's lawyer Rajiv Mohan requested leniency, arguing that the prosecution failed to prove a conspiracy and that mitigating circumstances existed. The sentencing took place in the Karkardooma court amid heightened security, with senior Delhi Police officials, including the Crime Branch Joint Commissioner, in attendance.
Why it matters
The verdict underscores accountability for violence during the 2020 Delhi riots and reflects the judiciary's stance on politically linked crimes.
In this story