Suspended AAP Councillor Hussain used rioters as ‘human weapons’, says court
   Date :14-Jul-2020

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NEW DELHI :
 
SUSPENDED AAP Councillor Tahir Hussain allegedly used rioters as “human weapons”, who on his instigation could have killed anybody, a Delhi court said on Monday while dismissing his bail plea in the murder case of IB official Ankit Sharma during the communal violence in north east Delhi. Additional Sessions Judge Vinod Yadav said that a “powerful person” like Hussain can threaten witnesses in the case if enlarged on bail. “At this stage, I find that there is enough material on record to presume that the applicant was very well present at the spot of crime and was exhorting the rioters of a particular community and as such, he did not use his hands and fists, but rioters as ‘human weapons’, who on his instigation could have killed anybody.
 
“In this case, it is apparent that witnesses, whose statements have been recorded are residents of the same locality and they can easily be threatened by a powerful person like the applicant (Hussain),” the judge said in his order. The judge, however, clarified that anything stated in the order was based upon “prima analysis of material available on record at this stage which is yet to be tested on the touchstone of trial”. The Delhi Police had, in its charge sheet filed in the case, alleged there was a deep rooted conspiracy behind Sharma’s murder as he was specifically targeted by a mob led by Hussain.
 
The charge sheet said that autopsy had revealed that there were 51 sharp injuries on his body and the way Sharma was killed by the cold blooded rioters has shaken the social fabric of the society and instilled a fear in the minds of the residents of the area.
 
The court, in its Monday’s order, said that it was a matter of record that the investigation in the matter was still under progress as some other persons have to be apprehended. It further noted that two persons have stated in their statements to the Crime Branch, about the conspiracy of communal riots allegedly being hatched at the residence of Hussain on February 24. The court said that even if there was no video footage or CCTV footage showing Hussain’s presence at the spot, there was enough ocular evidence available on record which prima facie established he was present at the place of the incident.