IANS

New Delhi, Jul 8: A court here Wednesday framed murder charges against Congress leader Sajjan Kumar and four others for allegedly killing one person in Sultanpuri area during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

Additional Sessions Judge Sunita Gupta framed the charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for murder, abetment of murder, arson and defiling a place of worship.

Besides Sajjan Kumar, the four accused in this case are Brahmanand Gupta, Ved Prakash, Khushal and Peeria.

They were charged for the murder of Surjit Singh Nov 1, 1984. Police said during rioting that day, over 100 houses were torched and a gurudwara was attacked in Sultanpuri.

According to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) counsel, after the framing of charges Wednesday the next stage in the case will be the start of the trial.

The order for framing of charges in the case came July 1.

The directive came two months after charges were framed against Sajjan Kumar in a separate case related to riots in the Delhi Cantonment area where he allegedly instigated a mob to kill Sikhs following the assassination of then prime minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards.

The CBI filed chargesheet against Sajjan Kumar and others in two cases for allegedly instigating mobs during the riots, in which more than 3,000 Sikhs were killed across Delhi and some other cities.