NEW DELHI: In February 2020, as demonstrations against the CAA bill continued at Chand Bagh bridge on the main Karawal Nagar road, Hindu and Muslim groups had resorted to stone pelting, brick batting, arson, firing, and sabotage.
Ankit Sharma was posted in the Intelligence Bureau during that time. At 5pm on February 25, 2020, he had stepped out to bring some household goods. Section 144 of the CrPC, which prohibits people from assembling unlawfully, was imposed across the entire northeast district.
When he had not returned for hours, his father, Ravinder Sharma, had begun searching for him at nearby places, hospitals and other locations. After he was unable to find his son for several hours, he lodged a missing person’s report at Dayalpur Police Station.
Soon after, Ankit’s body was recovered from Chand Bagh drain. There were several injuries on the body, prima facie caused by sharp weapons. The body was taken to GTB Hospital for postmortem examination, and an FIR was lodged.
More than six years after the riots, a city court on Friday awarded the first punishment for the murder in a case arising out of the violence. The court awarded life imprisonment to former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain and four other convicts—Javed, Anas, Kasim, and Nazim—for killing Sharma.
The verdict comes even as dozens of other trials continue, with several ending in acquittals over concerns about the quality of investigation and evidence. The judgement, however, has renewed attention on the pending cases relating to the remaining 52 deaths.
Until this verdict, only one person had been convicted in a riot-related death case, under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), in 2024. Most murder trials arising out of the riots ended in acquittals at the trial court stage for want of watertight evidence. Across several acquittals, the special courts have repeatedly criticised the quality of investigation, referring to “artificial” witnesses and allegedly “fabricated” evidence.
‘Justice will come from the High Court’
After a city court sentenced Hussain and four others to life imprisonment “Insaaf High Court se milega (Justice will come from the High Court),” former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain said on Friday as he was escorted out of the court after being sentenced to life imprisonment in the Ankit Sharma murder case. “The match was fixed. The High Court will deliver justice; it is not too late,” Hussain said.
Cases still pending in designated courts
Among the major pending cases is the prosecution relating to the death of head constable Ratan Lal, who died while on duty in Maujpur during the violence. Two city courts are hearing the riot cases, and charges have been framed in all the prosecutions. On June 2, a city court acquitted the Shiv Vihar murder accused holding that key witness lacked credibility. In April, 12 accused accused were acquited citing ‘significant inconsistencies’.
In the courts
Feb 23, 2020: CAA protests begin in northeast Delhi
Feb 25: Ankit Sharma goes missing
Feb 26: Sharma’s body recovered. FIR lodged
Feb 28: SIT inspects home of Hussain
Jun 3: Crime Branch files charge sheet against 10
Aug 21: Court takes cognisance of charge sheet
Mar 24, 2023: Court frames charges against accused
Jul 13, 2026: Hussain and four others convicted
Jul 27: Police seek death penalty for accused
Jul 31: Court awards life imprisonment to accused