📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Baap8969
Crime
Former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar Convicted for 1984 Anti‑Sikh Riots
✍️ NDTV
🗓 20 Aug 2026, 02:39 PM
👁 4
Three‑time Congress MP Sajjan Kumar was found guilty of involvement in the 1984 anti‑Sikh riots that erupted after Indira Gandhi’s assassination.
The Delhi court on Monday delivered a verdict convicting former Congress legislator Sajjan Kumar for his role in the 1984 anti‑Sikh riots that followed Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s assassination. The judgment concluded a decade‑long trial that examined evidence linking Kumar to the orchestration of attacks on Sikh neighbourhoods.
Prosecutors presented testimonies indicating that Kumar, then a sitting Member of Parliament, allegedly mobilised supporters and facilitated the distribution of weapons that were used to target Sikh civilians. The court found the material presented sufficient to establish his participation in the violence, which resulted in thousands of deaths and widespread property loss.
The conviction marks a rare instance of a senior political figure being held accountable for the 1984 carnage. Legal experts anticipate a sentencing phase in the coming weeks, which could see Kumar face several years of imprisonment. The verdict has been welcomed by Sikh community leaders as a step toward justice, while the Congress party has called for a fair appeal process.
Prosecutors presented testimonies indicating that Kumar, then a sitting Member of Parliament, allegedly mobilised supporters and facilitated the distribution of weapons that were used to target Sikh civilians. The court found the material presented sufficient to establish his participation in the violence, which resulted in thousands of deaths and widespread property loss.
The conviction marks a rare instance of a senior political figure being held accountable for the 1984 carnage. Legal experts anticipate a sentencing phase in the coming weeks, which could see Kumar face several years of imprisonment. The verdict has been welcomed by Sikh community leaders as a step toward justice, while the Congress party has called for a fair appeal process.