1984 anti-Sikh riots: Delhi court reserves order after complainant, state seek death for Sajjan Kumar

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Friday reserved for February 25 the order on the quantum of sentence against Congress leader Sajjan Kumar in a murder case relating to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

Appearing before special judge Kaveri Baweja, the complainant, whose husband and son were killed by a mob allegedly instigated by Kumar, sought the maximum punishment of death penalty for Kumar.

"The accused being the leader of the mobs instigated others to commit a genocide and crime against humanity and cold-blooded murders, and he deserves nothing less than capital punishment," submitted senior advocate H S Phoolka, representing the complainant.

The prosecution had also sought capital punishment for the former Congress MP.

The court asked the counsel appearing for Kumar to file his written submissions within two days.

"Put up for order on the quantum of sentence on the next date of hearing," said the judge.

Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh were killed on November 1, 1984.

The court on February 12 convicted Kumar for the offence and on Friday it sought a report from Tihar central jail on his psychiatric and psychological evaluation in view of a Supreme Court order asking for such a report in cases attracting capital punishment.

Kumar is currently lodged in Tihar jail.

The minimum punishment for murder is life imprisonment whereas the maximum is death.

Though Punjabi Bagh Police Station registered the case, a special investigation team later took over the investigation.

On December 16, 2021, the court framed charges against Kumar, finding a "prima facie" case against him.

The prosecution alleged a huge mob, armed with deadly weapons, resorted to large-scale looting, arson and destruction of properties of Sikhs to avenge the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

The mob attacked the house of the complainant, who is Jaswant's wife, killing the men aside from looting articles and setting their house ablaze, the prosecution claimed.

According to a report of the Nanavati Commission, constituted to probe the violence and its aftermath, there were 587 FIRs filed in Delhi in relation to the riots that saw killings of 2,733 people. Of the total, about 240 FIRs were closed by police as "untraced" and 250 cases resulted in acquittal.

Only 28 cases of 587 FIRs resulted in convictions, in which about 400 persons were convicted. About 50 were convicted for murder, including Kumar.

Kumar, an influential Congress leader and an MP at the time, was accused in a case over the killings of five persons in Delhi's Palam Colony on November 1 and 2 in 1984. He was awarded life imprisonment by the Delhi High Court in the case and his appeal challenging the punishment is pending before the Supreme Court.