February 17th 2025.
In a recent development, the Delhi government has announced its decision to file six appeals in the Supreme Court against the acquittals in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots cases. This decision came to light during a hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by former Shiromani Gurudwara Prabhandak Committee member, S Gurlad Singh Kahlon. It is worth noting that back in 2018, the apex court had set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate 199 cases that were previously closed.
Representing the Delhi government, Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati informed the bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan about their decision to challenge the acquittals in the top court. Taking note of this, the bench directed the government to file the appeals within six weeks and also requested Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna to tag the appeals with the ongoing case.
During the hearing, senior advocate H S Phoolka, on behalf of the petitioner Kahlon, presented judgments that showed the prosecution's involvement with the accused in the case. He emphasized that these were not ordinary cases and that the state had failed to properly prosecute them. He further stated that these cases were crimes against humanity and should be dealt with seriously.
The court had previously questioned the Delhi Police for not filing appeals against the acquittals in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots cases and urged them to take prosecution seriously and not just for the sake of it. The violence and killings of members of the Sikh community in Delhi in 1984, following the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her bodyguards, have been a topic of much discussion and have seen many twists and turns over the course of 40 years.
According to the findings of the Nanavati Commission, which was formed to investigate the riots, 587 FIRs were registered in Delhi and 2,733 people lost their lives. Shockingly, the police closed about 240 cases as "untraced" and only about 250 cases resulted in acquittals. This only highlights the need for proper prosecution and justice for the victims of these horrendous crimes.
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