Life Imprisonment for Ex-AAP Councillor and Accomplices in IB Officer's Murder

Court Delivers Sentence in High-Profile Murder Case

New Delhi: A Delhi court has sentenced former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain along with four others to life imprisonment for the murder of Intelligence Bureau officer Ankit Sharma during the riots in Delhi in 2020.

The sentence was delivered by Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh after considering the arguments regarding the severity of the punishment. The judge noted that the prosecution failed to demonstrate that the defendants could not be rehabilitated.

The courtroom was heavily secured, filled with legal representatives and senior officials from the Delhi Police, including the Joint Commissioner of the Crime Branch.

Previously, the Delhi Police had requested the death penalty for the accused, arguing that their actions during the assault on Sharma were inhumane.

Special public prosecutor Madhukar Pandey emphasized the brutality of Sharma's murder, stating that the convicts showed no mercy, even neglecting to take him to a hospital.

On July 13, the court found Hussain and the others guilty of Sharma's murder, which occurred when he was attacked by a mob during the riots. His remains were later discovered in a drain.

The court's ruling indicated that Hussain was part of a heavily armed group that gathered with the intent to commit violence against Hindus, leading to Sharma's brutal killing.

The prosecution successfully established that the members of the unlawful assembly were aware that their actions could result in death.

Hussain was convicted under several sections of the Indian Penal Code, including 302 (murder), 365 (kidnapping), 147 (rioting), 148 (armed rioting), 153A (promoting enmity), and 188 (disobedience to a public servant's order), in conjunction with Section 149 (unlawful assembly).