Delhi High Court asks police to reply to Tahir Hussain’s bail plea in IB staffer Ankit Sharma murder case

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday sought response of the police on a plea by former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain seeking bail in a case relating to the murder of IB staffer Ankit Sharma during the northeast Delhi riots in February 2020.

Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta issued notice to the police on Hussain’s plea challenging a trial court’s December 3 order rejecting his bail application for want of material change in circumstances.

Hussain, in his plea, said the trial has commenced in the case and out of 114, 20 prosecution witnesses have been examined so far and that he has been in jail for the last four years and nine months.

The plea, filed through advocate Tara Narula, said the applicant has suffered a long period of incarceration and since there are a large number of witnesses to be examined, the trial is unlikely to be concluded soon.

The petition stated that the co-accused persons allegedly involved in the riotous mob and committing the offence of murder have already been granted bail by the high court.

According to the prosecution, on February 26, 2020, complainant Ravinder Kumar informed the Dayalpur police station officials that his son Ankit Sharma, who was posted in the Intelligence Bureau, was missing since February 25, 2020.

He later came to know from some locals that a person had been thrown into the Khajuri Khas drain from the mosque of Chand Bagh pulia after being murdered.

The prosecution alleged that Sharma’s body was recovered from the Khajuri Khas drain and there were 51 injuries on his body.

Hussain is one of the accused in the case.

According to the prosecution, the four accused persons were also part of the violent mob which was involved in the acts of rioting and arson, which killed Sharma.

Communal clashes had broken out in northeast Delhi on February 24, 2020, after violence between citizenship law supporters and protesters spiralled out of control leaving at least 53 people dead and scores injured.