New Delhi: As per the Supreme Court of India here today has taken the decision to ‘investigate’ the “reasons” that lead to the closure of large number of 1984 Sikh genocide cases after petitioners raised allegations of “non-transparency” in court.
In the past two years of its investigation, the SIT has closed 199 serious criminal cases in connection with the riots of a total 293 handed over to it in 2015, said the media.
The Special Investigating Team (SIT) comprising two Inspector General-rank IPS officers and a judicial officer, was set up on February 12, 2015 was set up by the union home ministry on the recommendation of Justice (retd.) G.P. Mathur Committee.
Furthermore the Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi while protesting claimed that there was nothing opaque in the SIT’s decision to close the cases. “Sixty-two of them [cases] were untraced,” he stated.
The media reports further states that, senior advocate Arvind Datar, appearing for the petitioners drawn from massacre victims, said so far only four charge sheets had been filed of the 293 cases. He submitted that no closure reports were filed in court in the 199 cases.
“We intend to focus on the 199 cases in respect of which decision was taken by the SIT to close or not launch prosecution,” notes the court order.
The SCI while admitting the fact reportedly said that there was “some dispute” on whether closure reports were filed in any of the 199 cases.
Thirty-five cases were sent for preliminary enquiry, of which 28 have been completed. Seven of these are pending for consideration. Another 59 were sent for further probe, according to a recent SIT report submitted in the Supreme Court. Of these, 42 were closed and 13 are pending investigation. Only four charge sheets have been filed in the court, reads a quote in The Hindu.
A total of 3,325 people were killed in the 1984 Sikh genocide in which Delhi alone accounted for 2,733 deaths, while the rest occurred in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and other States.
Media sources while further reporting added that the Delhi Police had closed 241 cases citing lack of evidence. The Justice Nanavati Commission had recommended reopening of only four of them and the CBI acted as per the recommendation. In two of them, it filed a charge sheet and in one, five persons, including a former MLA, were convicted.
The SIT had questioned Congress leader Sajjan Kumar thrice and asked him questions about the allegations that he instigated a mob in Janakpuri on November 1, 1984, which led to the killing of Sohan Singh and his son-in-law Avtar Singh.