Shiromani Akali Dal President and Deputy Chief Minister Punjab Sukhbir Singh Badal speaking to the media after a delegation comprising of National and Regional parties met President of India Parnab Mukherjee at Rashtarpati Bhawan at New Delhi on Wednesday.
New Delhi, May 8, 2013: A delegation of national and regional political parties from all across the country today accompanied the patron of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and SAD President and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal to the President Pranab Mukherjee seeking his personal intervention to the direct the Union government for filing a fresh appeal against Sajjan Kumar and expediting investigation against Jagdish Tytler, for perpetrating incidents of violence against innocent Sikhs in 1984 genocide.
The delegation included the former Deputy Prime Minister and senior BJP leader LK Advani, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley, TDP Leader Namo Nageshwar Rao, Shiv Sena leader Anant Gangaram Geete, TMC leader K. D. Singh and INLD leader Ch. Ranveer.
Earlier, Badal and Sukhbir Singh Badal besides senior leaders, members of parliament and legislators of SAD BJP from Punjab had called on the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and presented a memorandum demanding expeditious and exemplary punishment to all the guilty responsible for 1984 massacre, including the key culprits Sajjan Kumar, Jagdish Tytler and others. The Akali leaders also met the Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde in this regard at his office here in North Block, who assured the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister that action against the accused of 1984 massacre would be expedited. Shinde also promised expeditious follow up in the case that has been sending against Sajjan Kumar since 1987.
The All India non-Congress party delegation primarily demanded setting up of SIT (Special Investigative Team) under the direct command of the Supreme Court to conduct a day-to-day hearing against those responsible for killing thousands of men, women and children in the 1984 massacre.
Divulging the contents of memorandum handed over to the President, the high powered delegation said that the genocide of Sikhs during November 1984 in the national capital and various other parts of the country hardly have any parallel, as between November 1 and 3 innocent Sikhs were killed every minute on the roads of the capital. These merciless killings of the Sikhs made thousands of women widows and orphaned thousands of children. But the law enforcing agencies rubbed salt into the wounds of the Sikhs by making all out efforts to shield the guilty instead of delivering justice to the victims by booking the accused. Sikh community in particular and the nation in general were anguished on the failure of the Government to deliver justice to them till date.
SAD Patron and Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal apprised the President that a ray of hope was seen when some cases were lodged against the guilty and subsequently trials were initiated, but to the utter surprise of Sikhs, the CBI gave clean chit to one of the prime accused Jagdish Tytler while another one Sajjan Kumar was acquitted. He said that it was rather appalling that while some of the accused have been convicted, the master mind Sajjan Kumar has been acquitted despite cogent and conclusive evidence against him including the unflinching testimony of eye witnesses. Badal said the blatant misuse of the system and the Government machinery to shield the culprits and failure to punish them has eroded the faith of victims and the Sikh Community across the globe besides all law abiding citizens of the country. The Chief Minister further said that the credibility of the CBI which investigated the case was already at its lowest ebb.
Urging the immediate intervention of the President to provide justice to the victims of the 1984 genocide and assuage the feelings of the Sikh community thereby instilling a sense of confidence in them, the delegation requested him to the direct the Union government that an independent and impartial investigation be conducted in the case. The delegation further said that the initial delay on the part of Police in registering the cases has directly helped the accused therefore it was necessary that an extra-ordinary procedure be followed even at this late stage so that justice was not denied in perpetuity.
The delegation also demanded that a Special Investigation Team (SIT), under an officer not less than the rank of IG, from outside the Delhi Police should be constituted to investigate the cases threadbare pertaining to genocide against Sikhs in 1984. This SIT should not only investigate the pending cases but also look into the cases where either the FIRs were not registered or if registered, were closed by the Police itself besides the cases which were not prosecuted properly resulting in acquittal of the guilty. The SIT should also investigate the role of the Police Officers and these investigations should be monitored by the Supreme Court of India.
The delegation also requested the President that the state must immediately file an appeal against the acquittal of Sajjan Kumar and the Government should take all necessary steps to ensure day to day hearing and disposal of the appeal within three months besides engaging an independent lawyer to argue the appeal. Likewise challans of the cases in which the investigations have already been completed should be presented in the Court of Law. The delegation informed the President that in FIR no. 67 / 1987 registered in Police Station Nangloi, New Delhi, Sajjan Kumar was accused and the investigation had completed but the filing of challan was pending since 1992 so the challan must be filed immediately in the courts.
The delegation also urged that investigation against Jagdish Tytler should be conducted expeditiously and challan should be presented as the court has already rejected cancellation report against Jagdish Tytler. The delegation apprised the President that though the loss of families, who had lost their dear ones in the genocide, could never be compensated but expediting these action would go a long way to instill a feeling of justice being done to them besides reposing the faith of Sikh Community in the judiciary.
Later talking to the media persons outside Rashtarpati Bhawan, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal resolved firmly to ensure justice to the victims of 1984 Sikh massacre, adding he unequivocally said: “The party will continue its crusade against the Congress led UPA government at Centre for their sinister designs to give umbrage to the guilty under its nose thereby compelling the Congress government to ensure exemplary punishment to all its leaders responsible for this inhuman and heinous act against mankind”.
Prominent amongst others who were the part of the delegation including BJP leaders Menka Gandhi and Shah Nawaz Husain, Chander Kant Khare, Subhash Wankhede, Bhavna Gawli (all Shiv Sena leaders), Sheilendra Kumar, Neeraj Shekhar (all leaders of SP), Sanjeet Kumar (leader JMM), Sultan Ahed Nadeem Ul Haq (leaders of TMC),) Arjun Sethi, Tathgaty Satpathy, D. Mehtob (Leaders of BJD), Vishwamohan Kumar, Kaushailender Kumar and Vaidnath Prashad Mahanto (Leaders of BJD)
Apart from these, Member Parliament from Bathinda Harsimrat Kaur Badal, President Youth Akali Dal and Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia and several Cabinet Ministers, Chief Parliamentary Secretaries, MPs, MLAs and senior party leaders of SAD-BJP and Members SGPC were also present on the occasion.
Prakash Singh Badal, Chief Minister of Punjab along with a delegation of MPs and MLAs of Shiromoni Akali Dal and Bharatiya Janta Party from Punjab and leaders of other party called the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Wednesday.