Sajjan Kumar, Former Congress MP Convicted In 1984 Riots Case, Passes Away

Former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar, who was serving a life sentence in connection with the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, died at a Delhi hospital on Thursday. He was 80. Kumar was serving his sentence at Tihar Jail when he was taken to Safdarjung Hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead. The hospital had not immediately disclosed the cause of his death. Kumar was convicted in a case involving the killings of five people during violence in Delhi following the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The Delhi High Court found him guilty of offences connected with the deaths during incidents in the Palam Colony area on November 1 and 2, 1984.

The court sentenced him to life imprisonment on December 17, 2018. The 1984 anti-Sikh riots erupted after Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards, Satwant Singh and Beant Singh, on October 31, 1984. Following the assassination, large groups of armed men attacked members of the Sikh community in several parts of Delhi. Sikh homes, shops and other properties were targeted during the violence, which spread across the national capital and other parts of India. More than 3,000 Sikhs were killed across the country in the violence, with the largest number of deaths reported in Delhi. The riots have remained one of the most contentious and painful episodes in India's recent history.

Questions surrounding the investigation and prosecution of those accused of involvement in the violence continued for decades, with several cases seeing renewed legal scrutiny years after the events. Kumar's conviction was seen as a significant development in the long-running judicial process concerning the 1984 violence. The Delhi High Court's verdict held him responsible for the deaths of five people during the Palam Colony incidents. His case was among those involving allegations against political figures and others accused of participating in or facilitating attacks against Sikhs during the riots. After his conviction, Kumar was imprisoned in Tihar and remained there while serving his life sentence.

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His death brings an end to his imprisonment, although the 1984 riots case and the broader questions surrounding accountability for the violence have remained subjects of public and legal debate. The violence followed an exceptionally volatile period in India's political history. Indira Gandhi had ordered Operation Blue Star earlier in 1984 to remove armed militants from the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar. Her assassination by two Sikh members of her security detail triggered widespread attacks against the Sikh community, resulting in thousands of deaths and extensive destruction. Kumar's political career had been closely associated with the Congress party.

He represented Delhi in the Lok Sabha and was a prominent political figure before the cases arising from the 1984 violence led to prolonged legal proceedings. His conviction ultimately resulted in a life sentence and his imprisonment at Tihar Jail. The circumstances surrounding Kumar's death were not immediately clear. He was taken from Tihar Jail to Safdarjung Hospital, but doctors declared him brought dead. Further information from the hospital or authorities is expected to establish the circumstances and cause of death. His death at the age of 80 marks the end of the life of a political figure whose name remained closely linked to one of India's most traumatic episodes of communal violence.

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