GURUGRAM: After the Punjab Congress sought to distance itself from remarks made by Congress Member of Parliament from Rohtak in Haryana, Deepender Hooda, calling 80-year-old Sajjan Kumar, who was serving two life sentences in connection with the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, a “role model” and describing his death as an “irreparable loss”, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) hit out at the Congress for its “anti-Sikh mindset”.
With less than six months to go for the 2027 Assembly elections in Punjab, Hooda on Saturday sought to clarify his remarks, saying he never used the words “role model” and that there was no such sentiment.
Punjab Congress has sought to distance the state unit from remarks by Haryana Congress MP from Rohtak Deepender Hooda, in which he described former Congress leader Sajjan Kumar as an “example” and termed his death an “irreparable loss” to the country’s political landscape.
The comments triggered a political controversy in Punjab, with Congress leaders in the state taking a markedly different position from Hooda and reiterating that the victims and families affected by the 1984 anti-Sikh violence must not be forgotten.
The issue has also provided ammunition to rival parties in Punjab, with the AAP, BJP and SAD criticising the Congress and demanding that the party clarify whether Hooda’s comments reflected its official position.
Hooda, the Congress MP from Rohtak and son of former Haryana Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda, told the media on Saturday, “I did not use the words, nor did I harbour any such sentiment.
These words are being put in my mouth by those who wish to play politics by undermining the spirit of brotherhood. I had no intention of hurting anyone’s feelings; those who know me are aware that I never harboured any intent to cause hurt to anyone.”
“As for the Sikh community, people know that we have always stood by them and supported them in every way. We share a centuries-old bond of brotherhood with Sikhs; our family has been connected with them through both joys and sorrows, and we have stood by them in every struggle. When it came to the rights of the Sikh brethren, we have always taken a stand. We stood in support during the farmers’ agitation,” he said.
Hooda further said that his family’s position on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots had been clear from the very beginning.
“A grave injustice took place; the guilty must face strict punishment. The Sikh community deserves justice. This has been our consistent stance. We stand fully with the Sikh community,” he said.
Condoling Kumar’s demise, Hooda had earlier termed it a “loss to the country’s political landscape” and praised the former Congress MP’s “connect with people and contribution to Delhi’s development”.
Former Punjab Chief Minister and currently Member of Parliament from Jalandhar, Charanjit Singh Channi, had on Friday described Kumar as a “murderer of Sikhs” and a “traitor”.
“He conspired to have Sikhs killed... Far from being a role model, even uttering his name is a sin. If such people become role models, the country will be destroyed,” Channi said.
Channi further said that Kumar should have faced the strictest possible punishment for his role in the killings. He stressed that the issue was not confined to the Sikh community or Punjab, but concerned the larger question of justice and humanity.
“How can the Sikh community, Punjabis and the country forgive him?” Channi asked, while pointing to the continuing trauma suffered by families who lost their loved ones in 1984.
Meanwhile, Punjab Congress president and sitting Member of Parliament from Ludhiana, Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, sought to distance the state unit from Hooda’s remarks, saying they may have reflected his “personal view”.
Warring described the 1984 violence as a “massive tragedy” and said neither Sikhs nor non-Sikhs could forget the suffering and trauma caused by the events.
“No person, whether a Sikh or a non-Sikh, can forget the pain and trauma of 1984,” Warring said, adding that the Congress had always stood in solidarity with those affected by the tragedy.
Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon said that even 42 years after the “horrific and painful” 1984 Sikh massacre, the wounds of the victims’ families remained unhealed.
“At such a sensitive time, describing a key convict in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots as a role model was a condemnable attempt to rub salt into the wounds of the victim families and reopen their painful memories,” Dhillon said.
Meanwhile, AAP MLA from Punjab Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal said the wounds of the 1984 anti-Sikh massacre were still alive in the hearts of Sikhs and described the remarks on Kumar as deeply hurtful to the community.
“If a senior Congress leader calls Sajjan Kumar his role model, it raises serious questions about the mindset and politics of the party,” Dhaliwal said.
