Delhi riots: Suspended AAP leader Tahir Hussain, accused in IB staffer Ankit Sharma's murder, arrested

Tahir Hussain, the suspended Aam Aadmi Party councillor who was absconding after being accused in the murder of Intelligence Bureau (IB) staffer Ankit Sharma, was arrested on Thursday.

He was arrested by Delhi Police immediately after dismissal of his surrender application by Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) Vishal Pahuja. Earlier, Hussain through his lawyer Mukesh Kalia, had moved a surrender plea before the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM).

On Thursday, Delhi's Karkardooma Court rejected his anticipatory bail plea observing that no one appeared from his side.

Hussain has also been named in two more cases of violence in Delhi although he has not been made accused in them. The FIRs are registered at Dayalpur and Khajoori Khas police stations in connection with the violence in these areas.

Ankit Sharma (26), who had worked for the IB as a security assistant since 2017, had gone missing as the riots were going on, and his body was found in a drain near his home in riot-hit Chand Bagh area.

A postmortem examination revealed that he was brutally stabbed to death multiple times by a sharp object for over four hours, leading to his death.

The autopsy report states: "Multiple abrasion.. deep cut.. by sharp edge objects." The panel of doctors, who carried out post mortem, has clearly stated that he was brutally and repeatedly stabbed, leading to his death.

His family had accused Hussain and his associates of being involved in the killing. Sharma's father also alleged that he had also sheltered a large group of men in his house who were pelting stones and petrol bombs in the area during the riots.

A total of 48 people have lost their lives till now in the violence.