'Nomination Can Be Filed Even While Sitting In Jail': Delhi High Court On Tahir Hussain's Interim Bail Plea To Contest Assembly Polls

The Delhi High Court on Monday listed for tomorrow a plea moved by former Aam Aadmi Party Councillor Tahir Hussain seeking interim bail in a 2020 North-East Delhi riots case in order to participate in the upcoming Assembly polls from Mustafabad constituency as a member of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) party.Justice Neena Bansal Krishna said that it will hear submissions in the interim bail plea tomorrow when Hussain' regular bail is also listed for hearing. Advocate Rajiv Mohan appearing for Hussain submitted that interim bail was being sought for 25 days in order to file the nomination and to canvassing the election. On this, Justice Krishna orally remarked that nomination can be filed even while being in jail. “Nomination can be filed even while sitting in jail,” the judge told Mohan. ASG Chetan Sharma appeared for Delhi Police and said that there are precedents where nominations have been filed from jail. He referred to the case of Khalistani separatist Amritpal Singh who filed his nomination last year from Assam's Dibrugarh as an independent candidate from Khadoor Sahib Lok Sabha constituency in the Lok Sabha polls. Mohan then said that since AIMIM is a recognized political party, Hussain has to file true account of all his assets and properties and there has to be a proposal for nomination. “I am in custody since March 16, 2020. I want to file true account of all my assets and properties. I'll have to choose a proposal…. Out of 11 cases, I am on bail in 8 cases,” he said. He also referred to the case of Engineer Rashid who was granted interim bail by the trial court in order to campaign for Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls last year. Mohan also told Court that Hussain has filed interim bails before the trial court in the UAPA case as well as a money laundering case connected to the Delhi riots in which he is in jail. The interim bail plea before the High Court has been moved in the murder case of Intelligence Bureau (IB) staffer Ankit Sharma during the riots. A coordinate bench had issued notice on Hussain's regular bail plea in the case on December 24 last year. Hussain was denied bail by the Trial Court on December 03 for want of material change in circumstances.Hussain is represented through Advocates Tara Narula, Sonal Sarda, Shivangi Sharma and Noyonika.FIR 65 of 2020 was registered at Dayalpur police station on the basis of the complaint made by deceased's father.He had lodged a missing report when his son went missing during the riots. Ankit's body was later recovered from a drain. He was declared as brought dead by GTB hospital.The complainant's son Ankit Sharma, an Officer working with the Intelligence Bureau, left his house at around 5 pmon the said date for buying groceries and general household items. However, he did not return home even after several hours. Later, his dead body was found lying in a drain near Chand Bagh Pulia. He had sustained sharp injuries on his head, face, chest, back and on his waist.Thereafter, an FIR was registered by the complainant stating that he had strong suspicion that his son was killed by the main accused Tahir Hussain and his associates. The post-mortem report of the deceased Ankit Sharma revealed that there were 51 injuries caused due to sharp edged weapons and blunt force.In March last year, the trial court framed charges against Tahir Hussain, Haseen, Nazim, Kasim, Sameer Khan, Anas, Firoz, Javed, Gulfam, Shoaib Alam and Muntajim. Charges were framed under sections 147, 148, 153A, 302, 365, 120B, 149, 188 and 153A of Indian Penal Code, 1860. Hussain was additionally charged under sections 505, 109 and 114 of IPC. Accused Nazim was additionally charged under section 25 of the Arms Act.Case Title: Tahir Hussain v. State

'Nomination Can Be Filed Even While Sitting In Jail': Delhi High Court On Tahir Hussain's Interim Bail Plea To Contest Assembly Polls

Nupur Thapliyal

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