Delhi Elections: Tahir Hussain, accused in 2020 riots, campaigns in Mustafabad

AIMIM candidate Tahir Hussain, who is accused in the 2020 Delhi Riots, conducted his election campaign in the Mustafabad assembly constituency on Wednesday.

Speaking to ANI, Hussain criticized opposition parties for neglecting the development of Mustafabad and failing to nominate a local candidate.

#WATCH | #DelhiAssemblyElection2025 | 2020 Delhi Riots accused and AIMIM candidate from Mustafabad assembly constituency Tahir Hussain says, "AIMIM has nominated me from Mustafabad Assembly Constituency. I have spent all my life here... Before today, all parties had neglected… https://t.co/JU1HboTgMU pic.twitter.com/5zhqVWRz0l

— ANI (@ANI) January 29, 2025

"AIMIM has nominated me from Mustafabad Assembly Constituency. I have spent all my life here. Before today, all parties had neglected Mustafabad, never nominated a local candidate, and never worked for the development of Mustafabad. I want to thank the SC for granting me bail," Hussain said.

The Supreme Court granted custody parole to Hussain on Tuesday, allowing him to campaign for the Delhi Assembly polls.

#WATCH | #DelhiAssemblyElection2025 | 2020 Delhi Riots accused and AIMIM candidate from Mustafabad assembly constituency Tahir Hussain conducts election campaign in the area.

Yesterday, the Supreme Court granted custody parole to Tahir Hussain to campaign ahead of Delhi… pic.twitter.com/QkljLPpMsE

— ANI (@ANI) January 29, 2025

A bench consisting of Justices Vikram Nath, Sanjay Karol, and Sandeep Mehta ordered Hussain's release from jail under the jail manual timing upon the deposit of approximately 2 lakh per day (12 hours).

Hussain is facing charges in the murder case of Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer Ankit Sharma during the 2020 North-East Delhi riots, which led to 53 deaths and many injuries. Hussain has been named in 11 FIRs related to the riots.

Tahir Hussain is contesting the Delhi Assembly elections against BJP's Mohan Singh Bisht, an incumbent MLA from the neighboring Karawal Nagar, AAP's Adil Ahmad Khan, and Congress' Ali Mehdi, the son of former MLA Hasan Mehdi.

The elections will be held on February 5, with the vote counting taking place on February 8. The Congress party, which had been in power for 15 years, has faced setbacks in the last two assembly elections, failing to secure any seats.

Meanwhile, AAP emerged victorious in the 2020 elections, winning 62 out of 70 seats, while BJP secured only eight seats.