Delhi High Court verdict against Sajjan Kumar hailed

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, December 17

Leaders of various political parties have hailed the conviction of Congress leader Sajjan Kumar in a 1984 riots case. The Delhi High Court on Monday sentenced the Congress leader to life imprisonment. 

Welcoming the verdict, former SAD minister Sikander Singh Maluka said it had come after 34-year-long struggle by the Sikh community. 

He said, “Other Congress leaders such as Jagdish Tytler and Kamal Nath will also meet the same fate for their involvement in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Delhi. The Congress has been shielding the accused for long and that is why justice was delayed in these cases.” 

Maluka said the NDA government had expedited the legal process in these cases, which finally led to the conviction of Sajjan Kumar. 

He added the BJP-led government had set up a special investigation team (SIT) to probe 1984 riot cases following the demand of the SAD. 

Lashing out at the Congress for appointing Kamal Nath as the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, he said the party had earlier allotted party tickets and given plum posts to the likes of Jagdish Tytler and Sajjan Kumar, which exposed its “anti-Sikh” face. 

He showered praise on noted lawyer HS Phoolka for fighting the cases of 1984 riot victims. He also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for delivering justice.

AAP MLA from Maur Jagdev Singh Kamalu also hailed the verdict. “Though the justice has been delivered after 34 years, I would say better late than never,” he said. 

The AAP MLA said, “A large number of innocent Sikhs were killed after the assassination of the then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, in 1984. The verdict will give at least some sense of closure to the families of the victims.” 

Reacting to the verdict, AAP leader Deepak Bansal felt that the verdict had come a bit too late as Sajjan Kumar was now in the twilight years of his age. The AAP leader said he might still knock at the doors of the Supreme Court. 

“There is a need to expedite the justice delivery system in the country. Hearing of such cases should be done on a priority basis. The punishment awarded to Sajjan Kumar is not enough as scores of Sikhs were killed in Delhi,” he added.

Meanwhile, local Congress leaders were hesitant to react on the verdict while restricting themselves to only hailing the HC order and refusing to comment any further.