A Delhi court on Thursday cleared former Congress Member of Parliament Sajjan Kumar of charges linked to alleged provocation of violence during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in the Janakpuri and Vikaspuri areas of the capital. The verdict was delivered orally by Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh, while the detailed written judgment is still awaited.
The case related to incidents of mob violence that took place in west Delhi in November 1984, following the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. In Janakpuri alone, at least two people lost their lives during the unrest on November 1 that year.
During the trial, Sajjan Kumar consistently denied any role in the violence. He told the court that he had no connection whatsoever with the incidents and claimed that there was no evidence to show his involvement. His defence argued that the prosecution failed to prove that Kumar was even present at the locations where the violence occurred.
Kumar’s legal team further pointed out that his name was included in the case decades after the riots, raising serious questions about the reliability of witness accounts and the strength of the investigation. According to the defence, the long delay severely weakened the prosecution’s case.
The acquittal, however, triggered deep emotional reactions among the families of the 1984 riot victims. Many broke down outside the courtroom, expressing anger, sorrow, and a sense of betrayal. Relatives of those killed said the verdict reopened old wounds and reinforced their belief that justice continues to slip away even after four decades.
“We lost our entire families. Husbands, fathers, brothers were burned alive,” said one grieving relative. “We have been fighting for justice for 40 years and we will not stop now. We will challenge this order in the High Court.”
The cases against Sajjan Kumar were registered by a Special Investigation Team in 2015, based on two separate complaints. One FIR related to the killing of Sohan Singh and his son-in-law Avtar Singh in Janakpuri, while the second concerned Gurcharan Singh, who was allegedly set on fire in Vikaspuri a day later.
Earlier, in August 2023, the trial court had framed charges against Kumar for rioting and creating communal hatred but had dropped more serious allegations such as murder and criminal conspiracy in these two cases.
Despite Thursday’s relief, Sajjan Kumar remains behind bars. In a separate case linked to the killings of Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh in the Saraswati Vihar area during the 1984 riots, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in February last year. The court ruled that while the crime was grave, it did not qualify for the death penalty. His appeal in that case is currently pending before the Supreme Court.
