Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Jul 8: Former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar on Monday asserted his innocence before a special court in connection with multiple killings during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, calling the charges against him false and politically driven.
Appearing before Special Judge Digvijay Singh at Rouse Avenue Courts, the 77-year-old Kumar was responding to allegations involving the deaths of Sohan Singh and his son-in-law Avtar Singh in Janakpuri, and Gurcharan Singh in Vikaspuri, who was allegedly burnt alive during the violence that followed the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
“I am innocent. I was never involved in this crime, not even in my dreams. There is no iota of evidence against me,” Kumar told the court. He claimed that he was not initially named by any witnesses and that his name surfaced only decades later, pointing to what he described as politically motivated targeting.
The 1984 riots, which erupted in the aftermath of Indira Gandhi’s killing by her Sikh bodyguards, saw widespread violence, especially in Delhi, leaving thousands dead and displaced. The cases against Kumar were reopened as part of the 114 cases reviewed by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed on the recommendation of the Justice G.P. Mathur Committee.
In August 2023, Kumar was formally charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) by the trial court, though the murder charge (Section 302) was dropped at that stage.
Earlier this year, in February, Kumar was sentenced to life imprisonment in a separate case related to the killings of Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh in Saraswati Vihar on November 1, 1984. The SIT found that Kumar had allegedly led a violent mob that burned the victims alive, looted and torched their home, and assaulted other family members.
Describing the 1984 violence as “one of the darkest and most shameful chapters” in India’s history, Sikh community members have demanded that the court now sentence Kumar to death, citing the scale of brutality and delayed justice.
The court proceedings in the Janakpuri and Vikaspuri cases are ongoing.