Arvind Kejriwal, Harsimrat Kaur Badal welcome Sajjan Kumar’s conviction in 1984 anti-Sikh riots case

The Delhi High Court says that the accused (Sajjan Kumar) enjoyed political patronage and escaped trial.

Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Monday welcomed the Delhi High Court’s order reversing the acquittal of Sajjan Kumar in 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. Shortly after the High Court convicted Sajjan Kumar in connection with the case, the AAP leader took to microblogging site Twitter saying “it has been a very long n painful wait for innocent victims who were murdered by those in power”.

“I welcome Delhi High Court verdict convicting Sajjan Kumar in 1984 riots case. It has been a very long n painful wait for innocent victims who were murdered by those in power,” tweeted the Delhi Chief Minister.

Kejriwal further said, “Nobody involved in any riot should be allowed to escape no matter how powerful the individual maybe.”

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) also welcomed the verdict of the Delhi High Court, asserting that the party would continue to fight for the victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

Speaking to mediapersons, SAD leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa said, “We thank the court for giving us justice. Our fight will continue till Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler get a death sentence and Gandhi family is dragged to the court and put in jail.”

Union minister and senior SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal also reacted to the verdict, saying that “everyone knows what happened in 1984 and we have been fighting for justice for the victims relentlessly”.

This came after the Delhi High Court reversed a lower court order, which acquitted Sajjan Kumar, awarding life imprisonment to him. The court also extended the life imprisonment of two other convicts from three years to 10 years.

While announcing the verdict, the court observed, “In the summer of 1947, during partition, several people were massacred. 37 years later Delhi was the witness of a similar tragedy. The accused enjoyed political patronage and escaped trial.”