Delhi Court Grants Bail To Former AAP Councillor Tahir Hussain In Delhi Riots Case

A Delhi Court on Saturday granted bail to former Aam Aadmi Party councillor Tahir Hussain in a case related to the 2020 North-East Delhi riots. [FIR 88 of 2020 registered at Dayalpur police station]

Hussain was recently granted bail by the Delhi High Court in five different riots cases. However, Hussain will still remain in judicial custody in other FIRs registered against him, including the UAPA case alleging a larger conspiracy to commit the riots.

Additional Sessions Judge Pulastya Pramachala granted relief to Tahir Hussain and noted that the two FIRs in which the High Court granted bail, and the case at hand, took place at proximate time and places. It also noted that many witnesses are common in all FIRs.

“In that situation, even though a bail order may not be a precedent for other case, in the peculiar situation, bail granted to the applicant by a court higher in hierarchy to this court, does create a material change in the circumstances in favour of the applicant,” the court said.

The judge said that the material change in the circumstance in itself becomes a ground to grant bail to Hussain in the FIR in question. The court directed Hussain to furnish a personal bond in the sum of Rs.1,00,000 each with one surety in the like amount. The judge directed Hussain to not leave India without express permission of the court and that he will not try to influence any witness of the case.

The FIR was registered in respect of an incident related to injured caused to one Ajay Goswami during the riots. Charges against Hussain were framed in November last year under Section 307, 120B and 149 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.

Advocate Tara Narula appeared for Tahir Hussain. SPP Madhukar Pandey represented Delhi Police.

While granting him bail in five cases, the Delhi High Court observed that Hussain’s custody of 3 years as an undertrial has already overshot the maximum period of punishment prescribed in some of the offences.

The court had also noted that were other aspects in the matter regarding improvements in statements, delay in the registration of FIRs, copy-paste statements of various police and public witnesses and discrediting of police witnesses.

A total of 11 FIRs were registered against Tahir Hussain in connection with the 2020 riots, including a UAPA case accusing him and others of being behind a "larger conspiracy" to commit the riots.

An ECIR was also registered by the Enforcement Directorate against Tahir Hussain. Charges against him were framed in the money laundering case by the trial court in November last year. Tahir Hussain’s challenge to the order framing charges was dismissed by the High Court and Supreme Court.

Recently, Hussain moved the trial court seeking regular bail in the UAPA case.

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