2020 Delhi riots: Former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain convicted of abetment to rioting; 12 others acquitted

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Saturday convicted former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain of abetment to rioting in connection with the 2020 northeast Delhi riots in the Dayalpur area, while acquitting all 12 co-accused of all charges.

Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh found Hussain guilty under Section 147 (punishment for rioting) read with Section 109 (abetment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The court acquitted him of all other charges faced in the case, while clearing his 12 co-accused—including Mohammad Shadab, Shah Alam, Riyasat Ali, Gulfam, Rashid, Mohammad Rihan, Mohammad Abid, Arshad Qayyum, Irshad Ahmed, Deepak Singh Saini, Navneet, and Mehak Singh—of all counts including rioting, arson, criminal conspiracy, and property damage.

Arguments regarding the quantum of sentence for Hussain have been scheduled for November 16. A detailed court order is awaited.

Hussain was expelled from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in February 2020 shortly after an FIR was lodged against him over his alleged role in the communal violence. He later joined Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM in 2024 and contested the 2025 Delhi Assembly elections on the party's ticket, where he was defeated.

Earlier in July, a Delhi court had convicted Hussain and four others in a separate case concerning the murder of Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer Ankit Sharma during the riots. That case was registered at the Dayalpur police station based on a complaint filed by Sharma’s father, Ravinder Kumar.

The communal clashes that erupted across northeast Delhi in February 2020 claimed 53 lives, injured hundreds, and caused widespread destruction of property. (PTI)