2020 Delhi Riots: Court Frames Charges Against AAP Leader Tahir Hussain, 9 Others

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court has framed charges against 10 accused persons including former Aam Aadmi Party councillor Tahir Hussain, and has discharged three in connection with the 2020 North-East riots for their alleged involvement in the acts of vandalism and arson carried out in various shops in the Moonga Nagar area. The allegations against Tahir are that he played a role in instigating the mob. Witnesses reported seeing him on his house's roof, pointing towards shops in question, leading to vandalisation and arson. The court observed that this evidence pointed to the mob being incited by Hussain to commit these acts of violence.

“Such evidence shows that this mob was instigated by Tahir Hussain to indulge into vandalism, loot and arson in the properties and shops situated in that area. That mob consequently attacked upon the nearby properties including the three properties in question in this case,” the court said. Furthermore, the court observed that the remaining nine accused -- Mohd. Shadab, Shah Alam, Riyasat Ali, Gulfam, Rashid Saifi, Mohd. Rihan, Mohd. Abid, Arshad Qayyum, and Irshad Ahmed -- joined forces with unidentified parties, sharing a common objective of causing damage and vandalism within the targeted area.

The Additional Sessions Judge, Pulastya Pramachala of Karkardooma Courts, has invoked Sections 148, 380, 427, 435, 436, and 450 of the Indian Penal Code against the accused. These sections include offenses from rioting with deadly weapons to theft, mischief, and arson, and Hussain has also been charged with abetment.

The case emerged from a complaint filed by Irshad Ali, who alleged that his shop, Royal Mattress, was looted and set ablaze during the riots by a mob. Two more complaints by Mohd. Zahid and Gunjan Sachdeva, reporting looting and damage to their shops in the same vicinity, were consolidated with Ali's complaint due to their shared time, place, and context.

The judge discharged Deepak, Mahak Singh, and Navneet, previously identified by a public witness as members of the mob that trespassed and looted at the Royal Mattress shop. The court, however, said that the prosecution failed to provide sufficient evidence establishing their involvement in the vandalism and loot incident.

The court showed displeasure over the unsolved nature of the vandalism at Royal Mattress, as well as the prosecution's cluelessness about the culprits initially. “…it is relevant to observe that the incident of vandalism at Royal Mattress remains unsolved. Moreover, it is also apparent that at the time of filing first chargesheet in this case, IO had no clue about culprits behind vandalism and loot taken place at Royal Mattress. Still, IO kept mum over such fact in the chargesheet,” the court observed.