1984 anti-Sikh riots: Delhi court awards life sentence to Sajjan Kumar in murder case

A Delhi court on Tuesday awarded life sentence to former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar in connection with the killing of a father-son duo in the Saraswati Vihar area on November 1, 1984, during the anti-Sikh riots.

Special Judge Kaveri Baweja pronounced its decision on the quantum of the sentence after it had convicted Sajjan Kumar of murder charges on February 18.

This case is related to the killing of Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh in the Saraswati Vihar area during the riots.

Earlier on January 31, the Rouse Avenue Court reserved its verdict after hearing additional submissions advanced by Public Prosecutor Manish Rawat.

On the other hand, Advocate Anil Sharma had submitted that Sajjan Kumar's name was not there from the very beginning and there was a delay of 16 years in naming him as an accused by the witness.

It was also submitted that a case in which Sajjan Kumar was convicted by the Delhi High Court is pending appeal before the Supreme Court.

Additional Public Prosecutor Rawat, in rebuttal, had 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, appearing for the riot victims, had argued that the police investigations were manipulated in the Sikh riots cases. Police investigation was tardy and to save the accused, he said.

It was also argued that during riots, the situation was extraordinary and therefore, these cases have to be dealt with in this context.

During the arguments, 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, 2,700 Sikhs were killed in Delhi in 1984. Senior advocate Phoolka had referred to the Delhi High Court judgement in the 1984 anti-Sikh riot case of Delhi Cantt wherein the court called the riots a "crime against humanity".

Initially, an FIR was registered at Punjabi Bagh police station. Later on, this case was probed by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted on the recommendation of the Justice G.P. Mathur Committee and a charge sheet was filed.

The Justice Mathur committee had recommended the reopening of 114 cases. This case was one of them.

On December 16, 2021, the court framed charges against the accused Sajjan Kumar for the commission of the offences punishable under Sections 147, 148, and 149 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) as well as the offences punishable under Sections 302, 308, 323, 395, 397, 427, 436, and 440 read with Section 149 IPC.

It has been alleged by the SIT that the accused was leading the said mob and upon his instigation and abetment, the mob had burnt alive the above two persons and had also damaged, destroyed, and looted their household articles and other property, burnt their house, and also inflicted severe injuries on the person of their family members and relatives residing in their house.

It is claimed that during the investigation, witnesses of the case were traced out, and examined, and their statements were recorded under Section 161 of the CrPC.

The statements of the complainant under the above provision were recorded on November 23, 2016, during the course of this further investigation, in which she again narrated the above incident of looting, arson and murders of her husband and son by the mob armed with deadly weapons and she is also claimed to have deposed therein about the injuries suffered by her and the other victims of the case, including her sister-in-law who is stated to have subsequently expired.

She had also clarified in that statement that the photograph of the accused was seen by her in a magazine after around one-and-a-half months.