AMRITSAR: Akal Takht Sahib, Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj, questioned the decision of Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court acquitting Congress leader Sajjan Kumar in a case related to the Janakpuri incident related to the November 1984 Sikh massacre, asking the government and the courts to clarify who was responsible for the massacre of Sikhs in Delhi.
He said that although Sajjan Kumar is still serving sentences in two Sikh massacre cases and will remain in jail, his acquittal in one case raises serious questions about the sincerity and seriousness of the government’s investigating agencies and is tantamount to rubbing salt into the wounds of the Sikh community.
Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj said that in the Sikh massacre case in which Sajjan Kumar has been acquitted, a 17-year-old minor, Gurcharan Singh, was murdered by being thrown alive into the burning truck of his father, S. Nath Singh. From 1984 to 2008, for 24 years, Gurcharan Singh—himself half-burnt—kept pleading for justice, stating that Sajjan Kumar was leading the mob on that day. However, his claims were ignored by the investigating agencies; his testimony was neither heard nor recorded, and he eventually passed away.
He said that although the CBI recorded Gurcharan Singh’s statement in 2008, it was not formally registered and made part of the case.
He said the Government should clarify why even when Gurcharan Singh’s testimony was recorded it was not made part of the case against him.
He further stated that the investigation into the Janakpuri case against Sajjan Kumar was being conducted by the Delhi Police, but the police closed the case without recording the statement of Gurcharan Singh, which is unfortunate and raises serious questions about the actions of the government and the police. He said that another witness in the case, Harwinder Singh Kohli, also consistently stated that Sajjan Kumar was leading the mob, but his case too was closed without investigation. Later, in 2015, when a new investigation team was constituted, the statement of S. Harwinder Singh Kohli was recorded, but by then he too had passed away. He said that family members of both the main witnesses also identified Sajjan Kumar and recorded testimonies against him, yet despite this he was acquitted, which is highly unfortunate.