New Delhi: A Delhi court on Saturday convicted Tahir Hussain, a former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor, of abetment to rioting in a case related to the 2020 North East Delhi riots in the Dayalpur area. The court also acquitted the other 12 accused in the case of all charges.
Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh convicted Hussain under Section 147 (punishment for rioting) read with Section 109 (abetment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), while acquitting him of the other charges.
He was expelled by the AAP in February 2020, hours after a First Information Report (FIR) was registered against him for his involvement in the northeast Delhi riots. He joined AIMIM, the Hyderabad-based party of Asaduddin Owaisi, in 2024 after which he contested the 2025 Delhi elections on AIMIM ticket but lost.
On Saturday, the court listed the matter for hearing arguments on the quantum of sentence against Hussain on November 16. The detailed order is awaited.
In August 2023, the Karkardooma court, while framing charges in the case, observed that Hussain had allegedly instigated a mob to vandalise, loot and set fire to shops in northeast Delhi during the February 2020 riots.
The court said the statements of witnesses indicated that Hussain was seen on the roof of his house pointing towards nearby shops before they were attacked. The court also referred to a witness’s statement that people were pelting stones and throwing petrol bombs from the roof of Hussain’s house.
It held that a prima facie case was made out against Hussain for rioting, theft, mischief and arson-related offences, read with the provision on abetment.
The 13 accused in the case were Hussain, Mohammad Shadab, Shah Alam, Riyasat Ali, Gulfam, Rashid, Mohammad Rihan, Mohammad Abid, Arshad Qayyum, Irshad Ahmed, Deepak Singh Saini, Navneet and Mehak Singh.
All of them were charged with rioting, causing damage to property, mischief by fire and criminal conspiracy, among other offences.
In July, a Delhi court convicted Hussain and four others in a case related to the killing of Intelligence Bureau officer Ankit Sharma during the 2020 northeast Delhi riots.
The case pertains to an FIR registered at Dayalpur police station on a complaint by Sharma's father, Ravinder Kumar.
The riots that broke out in northeast Delhi in February 2020 left 53 people dead, injured several others, and caused extensive property damage.
(With inputs from PTI & ANI)
