Before Tahir Hussain’s conviction, judicial panel visited scene of crime

4 min readNew DelhiJul 15, 2026 03:38 AM IST

On May 11, the lanes of Chand Bagh – one of the worst-affected localities during the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots – witnessed heavy police deployment. This is where Intelligence Bureau (IB) staffer Ankit Sharma was allegedly murdered in February 2020. His body was later recovered from the Khajoori Khas drain.

A judicial panel led by Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh of the Karkardooma Court arrived, accompanied by court staff, defence and prosecution counsel, local police and Crime Branch officers — who investigated the case – to visit the scene of the crime in order to verify the testimonies of witnesses.

Police officers said such visits before the pronouncement of a judgment are rare. “We had seen a similar development during the 2002 Gujarat riots. Judicial panels usually visit the site to understand the topography and verify witness testimonies,” an officer said.

The officer added that the judicial panel visited all the locations from where Sharma was allegedly picked up and dragged by the mob. The team also visited Gali 6 where Sharma lived in Khajuri Khas’s E Block. The drain below the Chand Bagh Pulia, where his body was found, is around 200 m away from his street. Hussain’s house lies between Sharma’s house and the drain.

In his order, the judge observed that one of the witnesses had never claimed that she saw the incident while standing inside the gate of Gali 6.

The judge, while referring to the testimony of the witness, said in his order: “…the fact that she is a witness to the riots of 25.02.2020 has not been challenged. What has been challenged is that, as she was inside the gate of her gali, she could not have seen the Chand Bagh Pulia. It is contended that this fact was established during my visit to the scene of crime. However, it is to be noticed that the witness had never stated in her examination-in-chief that she had witnessed this incident from inside the gate of Gali 6.”

“Her statement that she had come up to the gate of her gali and then seen the incident cannot be interpreted to mean that she remained inside the gate. Her exact position near the gate, whether inside or outside, was never clarified. Nor did she depose that the gate of her gali remained closed throughout her visits. Rather, she stated that it was open and that only during her last visit did she find it closed,” the order added.

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The judge also recorded that Chand Bagh Pulia was clearly visible from the point where the lane meets Main Karawal Nagar Road. During the inspection, the court found that even from inside the gate of Gali 6, Hussain’s house and the parking area of prosecution witness Pradeep Verma were visible, along with a stretch extending 5-10 m before the bridge.

“From the corner of the street where it joins Main Karawal Nagar Road, Chand Bagh Pulia is clearly visible. Even otherwise, the witness had not stated that she had seen accused Tahir Hussain at Chand Bagh Pulia. She stated that she had seen him near his (Sharma’s) house, which was close to Chand Bagh Pulia. During the scene of crime inspection, I observed that even if one stood inside the gate of Gali 6, Tahir Hussain’s house and Pradeep’s parking area were visible, and one could see up to 5-10 m before the starting point of Chand Bagh Pulia,” the order said.

Observing that the rioting had spread across that area, the court held that the mob would have been within the witness’s field of vision. “If Tahir Hussain was present with the mob near his house, she could very well have seen him,” it added.

Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023.

Professional Background

Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University.

Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories.

Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts.

Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials.

Recent notable articles

In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories.

1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey.

2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation.

3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police.

Signature Style

Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public.

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