The Delhi Police on Monday sought capital punishment for former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain and four others convicted in the murder of Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer Ankit Sharma during the 2020 northeast Delhi riots, describing the killing as “exceptionally brutal”, “cold-blooded” and falling within the “rarest of the rare” category.
Event Context
The submissions were made by special public prosecutor Madhukar Pandey before additional sessions judge Parveen Singh at Karkardooma Courts. The court reserved its order on the quantum of sentence for July 31.
“Ankit Sharma was abducted and relentlessly assaulted in a hapless manner. A total of 51 injuries were made upon the victim and 18 of them were through sharp-edged weapons. It is not a case where somebody was stabbed once or thrice,” the prosecution argued, noting that the accused continued assaulting Sharma even after his death.
The prosecutor added, “The accused were not human beings, they were animals. They did not have respect for the dead and should therefore be kept behind bars and given the death sentence.”
“The nature of weapons used by the accused shows the intent and the diabolical nature of the crime. It was a cold-blooded murder with a deliberate desire. No one carries a heavy cutting weapon without deliberation, akin to a butcher,” the prosecutor submitted.
On July 13, a Delhi court convicted Hussain and four others for Sharma’s murder, holding that Hussain, along with an “armed” mob, had carried out a “savage” and “relentless” attack. The court held that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Hussain was part of an “unlawful assembly which, with animus against Hindus, had assembled at Chand Bagh Pulia with a common object to commit rioting, loot, arson and to cause damage to Hindus and their properties.”
Team Analysis
Buttressing its submission for death sentence, the prosecution said the offence fell within the “rarest of the rare” cases, calling it “one of the gravest cases of extreme culpability.” The prosecutor argued that the atrocity and the conduct of the accused were defenceless, and any punishment less than death would be inadequate.
“Those who seek mercy should also show mercy. No evidence has been brought on record to show that any mercy was shown by anyone to carry the victim to a hospital. Hussain abdicated his responsibility of public service as a councillor” the prosecution submitted.
Hussain, represented by advocate Rajiv Mohan, argued that his case did not fall in the category of heinous depravity that did not merit reform. “No person has directly attributed me during the trial, and the court has found no evidence of any criminal conspiracy behind the incident. Injuries are not the criteria to decide the death sentence,” Hussain argued.
In its judgement, the court had held Hussain and four others guilty of murder while acquitting six others of all charges. The court had acquitted all persons of charges of criminal conspiracy.
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According to the prosecution, Sharma was killed in the vicinity of his home in Khajuri Khas on February 25, 2020, after he ran into clashes between two groups in the Chand Bagh Pulia area. As he attempted to pacify both sides, he was allegedly kidnapped, assaulted, and stabbed multiple times by a mob of 20-25 people. His body was recovered the next day from a drain in the area.
