Had the guilty been punished after the 1984 riots, communal incidents like those in Gujarat and Dadri would not have happened, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today said as he handed over compensation of Rs five lakh each to 1,332 families affected by the anti-Sikh riots.
On the 31st anniversary of the anti-Sikh riots, the Chief Minister and his Deputy Manish Sisodia paid homage to those who lost their lives in the violence that erupted in the aftermath of the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
"The massacre of 1984 is a blot on the country. It is very sad to note that though every political party has shown its concern for these riots but even 31 years after the massacre, no culprit has been punished and no justice has been done to affected families," he said.
"Had the culprits of 1984 massacre been punished in time, then the riots of Gujarat, and recently incidents like Dadri could not have happened," he added at the event in West Delhi's Tilak Vihar area where he distributed enhanced compensation cheques of Rs five lakh each to the families who lost their loved ones.
The Chief Minister said he would look into whether his government has the powers to set up a special investigative team (SIT) "for awarding immediate justice" to those affected by the riots, and would "certainly" constitute it if he can.
He further said that "peace and tranquility in the society is being disturbed and an atmosphere of communal hatred is being prepared and spread by divisive forces which has become a cause of concern to every Indian".
The Chief Minister also said "the intolerance in the country has reached so high that even the President has raised concern on it four times during this month".
