Court acquits Sajjan Kumar in 1984 anti-Sikh riots case

Citing the “absence of credible evidence” against him, a Delhi court on Thursday acquitted former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar in a case related to violence in the Janakpuri area during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh of the Rouse Avenue Courts said the prosecution had failed to establish Kumar’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt, which is essential for a conviction in a criminal trial. “Resultantly, because of lack of credible evidence as to the presence of the accused in the crime in question, or his being part of the unlawful assembly, or his involvement in any manner, either through instigation, conspiracy or abetment of any other nature, he is acquitted of the charges,” the court observed.

The case pertains to an FIR lodged at Janakpuri police station in connection with the killing of two men, Sohan Singh and his son-in-law Avtar Singh, on November 1, 1984. Kumar’s name was added later following a probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT), constituted on the recommendations of a committee headed by Justice G.P. Mathur, which revisited cases linked to the 1984 violence. In its chargesheet filed in 2022, the SIT accused Kumar of offences including murder, rioting, promoting enmity between groups, dacoity, mischief and hurting religious sentiments.

No release from jail

Despite the acquittal, Kumar will remain lodged in Tihar Jail as he is serving life sentences in other cases related to the 1984 riots. In 2018, the Delhi High Court awarded him life imprisonment for the killing of five Sikhs in Palam Colony, a verdict currently under challenge in the Supreme Court. In February 2024, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in another case relating to the murder of Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh in Saraswati Vihar.

Rejecting the prosecution’s argument that Kumar’s past convictions should weigh against him, the court held that guilt in one case cannot automatically establish guilt in another. “A man may be convicted of 100 crimes, but to be held guilty of the 101st crime, proof beyond a reasonable doubt in that crime is required,” it said.

Families’ reaction

Terming the acquittal an “injustice”, relatives of riot victims expressed anguish. Nirmal Kaur, whose father was allegedly burnt alive during the riots, said she had spent four decades seeking justice but to no avail. Wazir Singh, kin of another victim, alleged that Kumar escaped punishment in several murder cases due to his “power and influence”.