New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party on Thursday suspended Tahir Hussain from the party’s primary membership, pending an investigation, after an FIR was registered against him for his alleged involvement in the murder of Intelligence Bureau (IB) staffer Ankit Sharma.
The complaint was filed by Sharma’s father, following which a case was registered against Hussain under Sections 365 and 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The FIR was lodged at Dayalpur Police Station.
The action came hours after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said no one, irrespective of their party allegiance, involved in the violence in the national capital should be spared.
The body of Sharma, a resident of Khajuri Khas locality in northeast Delhi who had been missing since Tuesday evening, was recovered from a drain in Chand Bagh on Wednesday. His father Ravinder Sharma, who works for the Delhi Police, blamed Hussain for the death.
The postmortem examination revealed that Sharma was stabbed to death during the violence in northeast Delhi.
"Multiple abrasion, deep cut...by sharp edge objects," said the autopsy report.
BJP leader Kapil Mishra, who had earlier tweeted a video claiming it showed Hussain hurling petrol bombs and stones from the terrace of his residence as violence raged in areas of Northeast Delhi, has also accused the AAP councillor of being involved in the murder.
Hussain, however, has denied all allegations, claiming he himself was a victim of mob violence and was confined to his house as violence raged outside.
Speaking to CNN-News18, Hussain said Sharma’s family had levelled baseless allegations against him as they were currently going through a lot of pain and anguish.
Hussain said he was not present at the spot where the incident occurred, adding he would cooperate with the police in its investigation. Hussain also said he fears for his life after numerous rumours disseminated against him on social media.
Hussain said he was the “target”, and “not the attacker”, in reference to the video that allegedly showed him brandishing a lathi and hurling stones and petrol bombs at a house from this rooftop.
“I was the target and not the attacker. Just tell me one thing, will any rioter allow the police to enter his house if he is involved?” he said.
After the videos surfaced, the Delhi Police have sealed Hussain’s house as well as a factory belonging to him.
Petrol bombs, stones and bricks were found on the rooftop of his house on Thursday.
Hussain, however, said, "I worked to stop violence, I'm innocent. I stopped people from climbing up my building. On February 24, police conducted a search of my building and moved us out from there. Later, we shifted to a safe location. Till 4 pm on February 25, police were present in the building."
In the deadliest violence in Delhi in decades, at least 38 people have lost their lives while more than 200 people have been injured after clashes between groups protesting and those supporting the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) turned violent in Northeast Delhi.
(With inputs from agencies)
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