Make SIT status on ’84 riots public: Amnesty

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 5

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed by the Centre to investigate the 1984 anti-Sikh riots is not working in a transparent manner, Amnesty International India has said. The Amnesty team was in Chandigarh to launch a campaign to get justice for 1984 riot victims.

The Amnesty International demanded that the government should make the status of their investigation public and file charges against suspects wherever sufficient evidence is found.

Besides, they demanded comprehensive reparation and legal and policy reforms.

The Delhi Police had closed investigation into hundreds of cases after the riots citing lack of evidence.

A SIT constituted by the Centre in January 2015 to re-investigate the cases has made slow progress. In November, it had identified 58 cases for re-investigation.

“The SIT raised hopes among victims and survivors that they would finally get justice. But the SIT’s apparent lack of transparency so far has been disturbing,” said Sanam Sutirath Wazir, campaigner at Amnesty International India.

The SIT has the authority to file charges against accused persons where there is sufficient evidence. It was originally given six months to complete this exercise, but received extensions in August 2015 and August 2016. It is now slated to complete its investigation in February 2017, two years after it was set up.

A short film on the life of Darshan Kaur, a survivor of the massacre, was also screened at the event.