New Delhi, Apr 30: For Harvinder Kaur who had lost
her husband and other members of the family in the 1984
anti-Sikh riots, the wheel of justice has finally set rolling
as a Delhi court commenced recording of evidence, 22 years
after the incident.
The fight for justice for this elderly woman had hit
roadblocks from day one as the police in East Delhi refused to
register the FIR, which was lodged 12 years after the riots on
the recommendation of the committee which probed various riots
cases.
The FIR registered in 1996 had named six persons
including late Congress leader H K L Bhagat. But he was
discharged from the case for want of evidence.
The committee comprising Justice J D Jain, a retired
judge of the Delhi High Court and D K Agarwal, former IGP of
Uttar Pradesh, on the basis of Kaur's affidavit and other
relevant material had recommended the registration of case on
her complaint.
On Friday, Additional Sessions Judge Rajender Kumar
began the trial of the case by recording the statements of
Kaur as first prosecution witness to the case in which five
Congress workers, including a woman, have been chargesheeted
for barbaric killing of her husband Niranjan Singh, son
Gurupal Singh and son-in-law Mahender Singh.
Harprasad Bhardwaj, Ram Prasad Tiwari, Jagdish Giri,
Suraj Giri and lone woman accused Kamlesh are facing trial for
the incident which took place in Mansarowar park locality of
Shahadra.
In her deposition, Kaur said she was witness to the
incident in which a mob, allegedly led by local congress
leaders, stabbed and hacked to death with swords three members
of her family on November 2, 1984.
Kaur said that while going to the market on that fateful
day, she saw a rioting mob engaged in looting and arson. Many
in the crowd were known to her, some of them local political
workers, who were inciting people to kill Sikhs and burn their
bodies saying that this was a "rare opportunity."
She said she had returned home and cautioned the family
members to stay inside and after sometime the mob arrived at
her doorsteps and one of the accused Ram Prasad Tiwari shouted
her husband's name and dared him to come out. She did not open
the door and went upstairs and told Tiwari that "Sardarji" was
not at home.
Her family members then left the house and went from
house to house in the neighbourhood, evading the mob.
Kaur said she heard the cries that 'Sardars' were being
killed nearby and rushed to the spot. She saw the mob led by
the accused persons attacking three members of her family with
swords.
Bureau Report