Supreme Court Grants Custody Parole To Tahir Hussain For Delhi Election Campaigning

The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday granted custody parole to AIMIM candidate and Delhi riots accused Tahir Hussain to allow him to campaign for the Delhi Assembly elections.

The parole will be in effect from January 29 to February 3.

A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sanjay Karol, and Sandeep Mehta ruled that Hussain would be released from jail during the designated jail manual timing, upon depositing approximately Rs. 2 lakh per day to cover the expenses.

Hussain will leave jail for campaigning and return each evening within the prescribed jail hours.

The court stipulated that Hussain bear all expenses related to his custody parole, including those for Delhi police officials assigned to him, the jail van, and escort services. He was also directed not to address the ongoing case against him or meet witnesses while on parole.

Hussain agreed to bear the costs of police escorts and gave an undertaking not to visit his residence, which police allege was the location where the criminal conspiracy for the riots was planned. To facilitate his parole, the top court ordered him to deposit Rs. 2,07,429 upfront for two days’ expenses.

Earlier, the court asked Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju, representing the Delhi police, to take instructions regarding security arrangements and the required expenses if parole were granted to Hussain.

However, the ASG objected to the interim bail and custody parole, arguing that it could set a precedent for other prisoners to seek parole for election campaigning purposes.

Last week, a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court had given a split decision on Hussain’s plea for interim bail to campaign. While Justice Pankaj Mithal refused to grant interim bail, Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah allowed Hussain to campaign for the elections.

Hussain, a former AAP councillor, was granted custody parole by the Delhi High Court on January 14 to file his nomination for the Mustafabad constituency. He had challenged the High Court’s decision, which denied him interim bail for campaigning. The Delhi police opposed his plea, citing the gravity of the allegations, which included being a key perpetrator in the violence that led to multiple deaths during the 2020 North-East Delhi riots.

Hussain faces charges in the murder of Intelligence Bureau officer Ankit Sharma, who was killed during the riots. The violence, which erupted on February 24, 2020, led to the deaths of 53 people and left many others injured.

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