Delhi's Rouse Avenue court on Wednesday convicted former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar in a 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. The case is linked with the killing of a father-son duo in the national capital's Saraswati Vihar area on November 1, 1984.
The matter has been listed for arguments on sentencing on February 18. Sajjan Kumar is currently serving a life sentence in another anti-Sikh riots case in Delhi Cantt.
Special judge Kaveri Baweja passed the conviction order.
Sajjan Kumar was produced before the court from Tihar jail to pronounce the verdict. He was convicted for the murder of Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh on November 1, 1984.
What happened in 1984?
The prosecution says an armed mob resorted to large-scale looting, arson and destruction of properties of Sikhs to avenge the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
The mob killed Singh and his son and looted their house. They later set the house ablaze.
The court order said that Kumar not only participated in the mob but led it.
{{/usCountry}}The court order said that Kumar not only participated in the mob but led it.
{{/usCountry}}The court order found sufficient material to form a "prima facie opinion that he was not only a participant, but had also led the mob".
Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee's (DSGMC) general secretary Jagdip Singh Kahlon welcomed the court's verdict.
"Sajjan Kumar, who was leading the Sikh massacre 40 years ago, has been convicted and he would be punished... I thank the court for this... I thank PM Modi and HM Amit Shah for forming an SIT after coming to power. This is the result of reinvestigating the closed cases... We hope to get justice in the Jagdish Tytler case also," he said.
What were the arguments in the case?
Advocate Anil Sharma had submitted that Sajjan Kumar's name was not present in the case from the beginning. It was also submitted that a case in which Sajjan Kumar was convicted by the Delhi high court had been pending appeal before the Supreme Court.
Additional public prosecutor Manish Rawat in rebuttal submitted that the accused was not known to the victim. When she became aware of who Sajjan Kumar was, she named him in her statement.
Earlier, Senior advocate H S Phoolka had appeared for riot victims and argued that the police investigations were manipulated in the Sikh riots cases.
Phoolka referred to the judgement of the Delhi high court and submitted that It was not an isolated case, it was a part of a bigger massacre.
It was further argued that as per official figures, 2700 Sikhs were killed in Delhi in 1984.
Who is Sajjan Kumar?
Sajjan Kumar is a former Congress MP who was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment in the 1984 Sikh riots case in 2018.
First elected to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi in 1977, he was sworn in as the Delhi Councillor the same year. An active politician from Delhi, he went on to win the 2004 Lok Sabha elections from Outer Delhi.
On November 1, 1984, Sajjan Kumar, according to witnesses, had incited mobs to attack the Sikh community to avenge the assassination of then-prime minister Indira Gandhi of Congress, who was shot dead by her Sikh bodyguards a day earlier.
With inputs from PTI, ANI