1984 anti-Sikh riots: SC to hear in July plea of Sajjan Kumar against punishment

The Supreme Court on Monday deferred to July the hearing on petitions filed by former Congress leader Sajjan Kumar and former Congress councillor Balwan Khokhar challenging the life sentence awarded to them and seeking suspension of the sentence.

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A Bench led by Justice JK Maheshwari, however, clarified that “if the final hearing is not possible, the petitioner would be at liberty to make mention of the grant of prayer to suspend the sentence".

The Bench – which also included Justice Aravind Kumar -- summoned the trial court records and directed that the same be supplied to all parties concerned.

On behalf of the victim, senior counsel HS Phoolka said that the case related to the murder of five Sikhs but in fact around 350 Sikhs were killed in the area during the 1984 riots.

Around 3,000 people, mostly Sikhs, had died in the riots in the national capital in the aftermath of assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984. Besides Khokhar and Kumar, who are serving a life term in the case, ex-MLA Mahender Yadav was awarded a 10-year sentence. Yadav died in Mandoli jail during Covid-19 pandemic.

Sajjan Kumar and Balwan Khokhar are lodged in Tihar jail since their conviction on December 17, 2018.