I am not the attacker: AAP councillor Tahir Hussain

New Delhi, Feb 27 (IANS) After coming under scanner of the Delhi Police for his alleged role in the arson in North-East Delhi which has claimed 38 lives so far besides injuring 200 others, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain claimed on Thursday that he was the "target", and "not the attacker".

Speaking to reporters in the national capital, Hussain said, "I was the target and not the attacker. Just tell me one thing, will any rioter allow the police to enter his house if he is involved?"

His remarks came after a number of videos surfaced on social media, showing people allegedly throwing petrol bombs and stones from his rooftop. Following the surfacing of the videos, Delhi Police have sealed Hussain's house besides registering a case against him.

In one such video, Hussain is seen holding a wooden stick with smoke rising from his building. Admitting that he was seen in the video, he clarified that the video was of February 24.

"The rioters had entered my house after breaking the main door. I was trying to shoo them away using a lathi," he said, adding that he had even called the police but no one responded to his calls.

Hussain further said that the police came to his house at 9 p.m. on Sunday. "Joint Commissioner Alok Kumar and DCP A.K. Singla came here. They searched my house in the presence of my neighbours, following which I left along with my family," he said, adding that when he returned on Tuesday morning, he found the situation has worsened. So he left again after speaking to the police.

Earlier in the day, IANS reached the roof of Hussain's house where stones and bottles, which appeared to be meant for petrol bombs, were found.

Even the father of slain Intelligence Bureau (IB) staffer Ankit Sharma has alleged that Hussain was behind the killing of his son by a mob on Tuesday.

Hussain further said that the rioters barged into his house and he was only trying to protect it from them.

In a 41-second video clip posted on social media, Hussain could be seen making an appeal in what appears to be the middle of the rioting.

Meanwhile, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, while responding to allegations that the AAP leader was involved in the killing of Ankit Sharma, said: "No one, be it any party, should be spared if they are responsible for inciting violence. Even if he is a part of my Cabinet, he should be punished. If anyone from AAP is found guilty, they should get double the punishment."

In one of the deadliest violence in Delhi in decades, at least 38 people have lost their lives while over 200 people have been injured after clashes between pro and anti-CAA protesters turned violent in North-East Delhi.

The clashes first broke out on Sunday. In the three days that followed, hundreds of vehicles, shops and homes were gutted. Questions have been raised over Delhi Police's efficiency for failing to control the situation.