New Delhi, August 12, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Delhi Police on Wednesday informed the Delhi High Court that it will challenge the acquittal of six accused in the 2020 North-East Delhi riots murder case of Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer Ankit Sharma.
The submission was made before a Division Bench of Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Vikas Mahajan while the court was hearing appeals filed by convicts Nazim and Kasim against their conviction and life sentences.
Special Counsel Rajat Nair told the court that the prosecution was also in the process of filing an appeal against the acquittals.
The High Court took note of the submission and issued notice to the Delhi Police on the appeals filed by Nazim and Kasim. It listed their applications seeking suspension of sentence and bail for consideration on December 2.
The appeals arise from the July 13 judgment of the Karkardooma court, which convicted former Aam Aadmi Party councillor Tahir Hussain, along with Javed, Anas, Nazim and Kasim, in the murder case. Six other accused were acquitted after the trial court found that the prosecution had not established the charges against them beyond reasonable doubt.
The five convicts were held guilty under Sections 302, 365, 188, 153A, 147, 148 and 149 of the Indian Penal Code and were subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment. They were, however, acquitted of the charge of criminal conspiracy under Section 120B.
While sentencing the accused, Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh termed the killing a “very serious” incident and said Sharma had been “brutally murdered”, with his body left “like an animal”. The court observed that the crime had “shaken the conscience of society”.
The Delhi Police had sought the death penalty, describing the killing as cold-blooded and brutal and citing the 51 injuries found on Sharma’s body. The defence opposed capital punishment, arguing that the case did not meet the “rarest of rare” threshold.
Sharma’s body was recovered from a drain in Khajuri Khas on February 26, 2020, amid communal violence in North-East Delhi. According to the prosecution, he was caught in clashes near his residence on February 25, allegedly abducted by a mob, assaulted and stabbed before his body was dumped in the drain.
An FIR was registered at Dayalpur police station following a complaint by Sharma’s father, Ravinder Kumar, who said his son had gone out to buy household items and did not return.
The North-East Delhi riots in February 2020 claimed 53 lives, besides leaving several people injured and causing extensive damage to property.
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