NEW DELHI: The Rouse Avenue Court on Wednesday acquitted former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar and all other accused in a murder case tied to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Sultanpuri in west Delhi.
Special Judge Geetanjli Goel said, “The accused Sajjan Kumar is given the benefit of the doubt and acquitted for various offences under the IPC, including promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race etc. (Section 153A), abetment of any offence (Section 109), murder (Section 302) and rioting (147).”
He was also acquitted of rioting while armed with a deadly weapon, unlawful assembly and damage to a place of worship. Though Kumar got bail in the present case, he will still remain in Tihar Jail, where he was lodged after his conviction in another case related to the riots.
Besides Kumar, the special court also acquitted two other accused -- Ved Prakash Pial and Brahmanand Gupta -- holding that the prosecution failed to prove the case of murder and rioting against them.
Last month, the court had framed charges against Kumar terming him as “principal abettor” in the case. Kumar was part of a mob with an objective to set ablaze a gurdwara located in Gulab Bagh in Delhi’s Nawada area on November 1, 1984, the court said earlier.