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An Indian court docket sentenced former lawmaker Sajjan Kumar to life imprisonment for orchestrating the homicide of two Sikh males throughout the 1984 riots concentrating on the minority group.
The politician was convicted of inciting a mob that killed Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh within the aftermath of then prime minister Indira Gandhi’s assassination by her Sikh bodyguards.
Particular decide Kaveri Baweja delivered the ruling on Tuesday.
The prosecution had sought the loss of life penalty, however the decide opted for all times imprisonment.
Investigators had accused the former Congress social gathering lawmaker of main a mob that burned two Sikh males to loss of life and looted their dwelling throughout the anti-Sikh riots.
The prosecution argued that he orchestrated the assault whereas Kumar’s legal professionals questioned the reliability of eyewitness testimonies that have been taken after a delay of seven years.
“The current case is extra critical than the Nirbhaya case. In that case, a younger girl was focused. Right here, folks of a selected group have been attacked,” the prosecution mentioned, stating that Kumar’s crime fell below the “rarest of uncommon” class which deserved the loss of life penalty.
Sectarian riots erupted in Delhi and elsewhere in India after Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards in 1984. She had angered the minority Sikh group by sending the army to storm the Golden Temple – the holiest Sikh shrine in Amritsar in Punjab – to eradicate militants holed up there.
“We is not going to settle for something lower than the loss of life penalty. We’re not pleased with the decision of the court docket,” Sikh chief Gurlad Singh was quoted as saying by India At the moment. “We’ll enchantment to the federal government to go to a better court docket and announce the loss of life penalty for Sajjan Kumar.”
Kumar is already serving a life sentence following his 2018 conviction by the Delhi Excessive Court docket for the killing of 5 Sikhs in Raj Nagar Half I, Palam Colony, on 1-2 November 1984, and for orchestrating the burning of a gurdwara in Raj Nagar Half II of the capital.
In September 2023, a Delhi court docket acquitted Kumar in a case involving the killing of seven Sikhs throughout the 1984 riots in Sultanpuri.
He nonetheless faces a pending case in a Delhi court docket whereas two appeals in opposition to his acquittal are earlier than the Excessive Court docket. An enchantment in opposition to his conviction in one other case is pending within the Supreme Court docket.
For many years, households of the victims of the anti-Sikh riots struggled for justice, dealing with repeated setbacks on account of alleged political interference and police inaction.
Regardless of a number of inquiries and commissions, little progress was made and key accused, together with Kumar, remained untouched by the legislation. It was solely in 2018, after sustained stress from activists and households of the victims, that the Supreme Court docket intervened and ordered a contemporary investigation and fast-tracking trials. This led to Kumar’s conviction and life sentence.
The Indian authorities arrange the Nanavati Fee in 2000 to research the 1984 riots. Headed by Justice GT Nanavati, the fee submitted its report in 2005, naming key political figures, together with Kumar and former minister Jagdish Tytler, as instigators of the violence.
The report, citing official estimates, says 2,733 Sikhs have been killed in Delhi between 31 October and 5 November 1984. It notes, nonetheless, that Sikh group representatives dispute this determine, claiming that over 3,000 Sikhs have been killed.
The report notes that many of the deaths happened on 1 and a pair of November 1984. “Large mobs armed with weapons attacked the homes of Sikhs,” it says, “male members have been assaulted and overwhelmed mercilessly and lots of of them have been burned alive or lower into items.”
“Many lifeless our bodies have been eliminated in autos and it’s alleged that they have been thrown into river Yamuna,” it continues. “Massive variety of outlets and enterprise institutions of Sikhs have been looted and lots of of them have been subsequently burnt as nicely. Many taxi stands and taxis have been burnt as primarily Sikhs have been in that enterprise.”
A Sikh group chief expressed disappointment that Kumar was not given the loss of life penalty however acknowledged that justice had prevailed along with his life sentence, even after 41 years.
“We’re upset that somebody like Sajjan Kumar was not given the loss of life penalty. I consider if he had been given a loss of life sentence, it could have been higher, and we might have felt happy,” Jagdip Singh Kahlon, normal secretary of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Administration Committee, was quoted as saying by the information company ANI on Tuesday. “After 41 years, even when he bought life imprisonment, justice has prevailed. I respect the decision of the court docket.”
