Breaking | Tahir Hussain, Others Get Life Imprisonment For Murder Of IB Staffer Ankit Sharma During Delhi Riots
Nupur Thapliyal
31 July 2026 4:20 PM IST
A Delhi Court on Friday sentenced former Aam Aadmi Party Councillor Tahir Hussain to life imprisonment in the murder case of Intelligence Bureau (IB) staffer Ankit Sharma during the 2020 North-East Delhi riots.
Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh of Karkardooma Courts pronounced the order.
The Court also sentenced other convicts, namely Javed, Anas, Nazim and Kasim, to life imprisonment.
The Delhi Police had sought death penalty for Hussain as well as other four convicts.
While pronouncing the order, the Court noted that the crime was committed during the communal violence in North East Delhi and the manner in which it was committed was of utmost brutality, done solely on account of religion.
The judge said the deceased's body was dragged like animal till Chandbagh pulia and was thereafter thrown in the drain. The barbarity committed is nauseating and sickening, the judge added.
Even though the State sought death penalty for convicts, the Court said that prosecution dis not bring anything on record that there was any violent disposition or propensity to the crime on part of the five convicts.
It said that there was no previous involvement in any crime and that the convicts can be disciplined and made to follow the rule based order.
The Court said that though there is no bar to order death penalty, however, in such cases it has to be seen that beyond someone's life is ordered to be extinguished, there should be something beyond unlawful assembly to be proved.
The Delhi Police had submitted that Sharma was abducted, assaulted relentlessly and killed by the convicts.
“Ankit Sharma was abducted and relentlessly assaulted before he was killed. A total of 51 wounds were found on his body, 18 of these were inflicted with sharp weapons. The nature of the weapons used shows the intent and diabolical nature of the crime. They fell to the level of being animals. Even after the victim died, they kept on the assault," it was said.
The prosecution had argued that it was a cold-blooded murder where “people turned into butchers” and they should be kept behind bars, and be given the maximum punishment, i.e. death sentence.
On the other hand, the counsel Hussain had said that every convicted person should not be given the death sentence and that aggravating circumstances should be considered first and then the mitigating circumstances.
He had argued that the death penalty is only given in rarest of rare cases and in this case, the judgement only mentions the presence of mob at the crime scene, but not about the specific role of the convicts.
Hussain was convicted for the offences under Section 188, 153A, 147, 148, 149, 365 and 302 of IPC. He has been acquitted for offences under Section 120B and 129 of IPC. He was however discharged for the offence of criminal conspiracy. The judge had also convicted four other men in the case.
The matter pertains to FIR 65 of 2020 registered at Dayalpur police station.
The FIR was registered on the basis of the complaint made by the 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 2023, 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.
