New Delhi, Jul 31 A Delhi court on Friday sentenced former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain and four co-convicts to life imprisonment for the murder of Intelligence Bureau officer Ankit Sharma during the 2020 Delhi riots, saying the case did not fall within the "rarest of rare" category warranting death penalty.
The prosecution had vehemently sought death penalty for all the five accused, saying they fell to the "level of being animals" while relentlessly assaulting Sharma.
While also convicting Nazim, Qasim, Javed and Anas, Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh said the prosecution failed to establish that they had such a violent disposition or criminal propensity that their continued existence, even in prison, would pose a menace to society.
"The final test that law requires me to undertake before I conclude that this case invites capital punishment is whether the convicts are beyond redemption and there is no chance of reformation," the judge said, adding that the case did not fall under the rarest of rare category warranting imposition of death penalty.
Hussain was sentenced to six months' rigorous imprisonment under IPC Section 188, three years under Section 153A, two years under Section 147, three years under Section 148, seven years under Section 365 and imprisonment for life under Section 302 IPC. All the sentences will run concurrently.
He was also fined Rs 1,000 under IPC Section 188, Rs 20,000 each under Sections 153A, 147 and 148, Rs 50,000 under Section 365 and Rs 5 lakh under Section 302, with default sentences prescribed for non-payment.
The court noted that the State had not brought any material on record to show that any of the convicts had a violent disposition or previous involvement in violent crimes.
"It is only when the State establishes that the convict has travelled far down the road to perdition that there is no coming back, and that he has become a menace of such magnitude to society that society must be rid of him, that capital punishment can be resorted to," the judge said.
The judgment was pronounced in the physical presence of Hussain and the four co-convicts amid heavy security inside a packed courtroom.
"Insaaf high court se milega (Justice will come from the high court)," Hussain said while being escorted out of the courtroom after the sentence.
"The match was fixed and the high court will give justice, it is not too late," he added.
The court also said that the conduct of Qasim, Nazim and Hussain in jail had been satisfactory except for minor infractions, while Javed and Anas had not been reported to have indulged in any criminal activity after being released on bail.
The judge also refused to accept arguments advanced by the prosecution during sentencing that Hussain had instigated or led the unlawful assembly by using his residence as an operational base.
"It must be recalled that the prosecution has failed to prove the allegation that Tahir had instigated or let any unlawful assembly. The allegation of Tahir Hussain putting his house as a launchpad or base for riots was neither a part of the charges framed against him, nor was specifically sought to be proved in evidence," the judge said.
The court further treated the educational background of four of the convicts as a mitigating circumstance. It observed that Qasim, Nazim and Javed were illiterate while Anas had studied only up to class 4, making them more susceptible to misinformation and communal propaganda in the atmosphere prevailing during the riots.
Holding that the mitigating circumstances balanced the aggravating factors, the court concluded that the prosecution had failed to prove that the convicts were beyond reformation.
"I find myself unable to agree that the convicts are beyond reformation or have such a fiendish character that their continued existence, even in prison, will be a menace to society," the court said.
The judge, however, said that the offences had been committed with complete disregard for law and human life and said the convicts must face the full force of law for the remaining offences.
Hussain's co-convicts were awarded life imprisonment under Section 302 IPC with a fine of Rs 25,000 each.
They were also sentenced to six months under Section 188, three years under Section 153A, two years under Section 147, three years under Section 148 and seven years under Section 365 IPC, along with fines ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 10,000 under the respective provisions. All the sentences will run concurrently.
On July 13, the court had convicted all five accused for Sharma's murder, holding that they were members of a heavily armed unlawful assembly that brutally assaulted and killed the IB officer during the communal violence.
Sharma's family said it was a "very long and painful journey" and though there were times when they felt the legal process would never end, they continued to have faith in the judicial system.
The AAP sought to distance itself from Hussain with its Delhi chief Saurabh Bharadwaj alleging he was "indirectly working for the BJP".
Bharadwaj said the AAP had expelled Hussain immediately after the FIR was registered against him in connection with Sharma's murder.
The BJP sought an apology from party chief Arvind Kejriwal saying he extended "protection" to Hussain when the riots took place.
