1984 anti-Sikh riots: Delhi HC issues notice to Sajjan Kumar on CBI's appeal

The Delhi High Court today issued notice to Congress leader Sajjan Kumar on an appeal of the CBI challenging his acquittal in a 1984 anti-Sikh riots case relating to the killing of five Sikhs by a mob.

A bench of Justices G S Sistani and G P Mittal asked the Congress leader to file his response to the petition of the probe agency and fixed the matter for further hearing on August 27.

A lower court had on May 30, let off Kumar in the 29-year-old case as key witness Jagdish Kaur did not name him as an accused in her statement

Sajjan Kumar was facing trial along with Balwan Khokkar, Mahender Yadav, Girdhari Lal, Kishan Khokkar and Captain Bhagmal for allegedly conspiring and inciting a mob against the Sikh community.

The case relates to anti-Sikh riots that had broken out after the assassination of Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984. Gandhi was shot dead by two of her bodyguards at her residence in New Delhi.

The case, in which these five persons were held guilty, deals with the death of five Sikhs - Kehar Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Raghuvender Singh, Narender Pal Singh and Kuldeep Singh - who were members of the same family and were killed by the mob in Delhi Cantonment's Raj Nagar area.