Prosecution Seeks Death Penalty For Ex-Congress MP Sajjan Kumar In Murder Case

Sajjan Kumar

The prosecution on Tuesday called for the death penalty for former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar in a murder case related to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, describing the crime as one of the “rarest of rare” cases.

Special judge Kaveri Baweja was informed of this demand through a written submission by the prosecution.

While the minimum punishment for murder is life imprisonment, the prosecution argued that the severity of Kumar’s actions warranted the death penalty. The judge, however, deferred the matter to February 21, as Kumar’s defense counsel requested additional time to present their arguments.

This request was due to a protest by lawyers against the Advocate Amendment Bill, 2025, which had led to an abstention from work on that day. Senior advocate H.S. Phoolka, representing the complainant, supported the prosecution’s demand for the death penalty and also sought time to argue the case.

Kumar is currently incarcerated in Tihar Jail. The case involves the murder of Jaswant Singh and his son, Tarundeep Singh, on November 1, 1984. Initially registered at the Punjabi Bagh Police Station, the investigation was later taken over by a special investigation team.

On December 16, 2021, the court framed charges against Kumar, finding a “prima facie” case against him.

The prosecution claims that a large mob, armed with deadly weapons, engaged in widespread looting, arson, and destruction of Sikh properties to avenge the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

According to the prosecution, the mob attacked the complainant’s house, killing the men, looting valuables, and setting the property on fire.

The Nanavati Commission, which investigated the violence and its aftermath, reported that 587 FIRs were filed in Delhi in connection with the riots, resulting in the deaths of 2,733 people. Of those, 240 FIRs were closed as “untraced,” and 250 cases ended in acquittals. Only 28 cases resulted in convictions, with about 400 people convicted, including 50 for murder, among them Sajjan Kumar.

Kumar, who was an influential Congress leader and MP at the time of the riots, was also accused in a separate case concerning the killings of five individuals in Delhi’s Palam Colony during the riots on November 1 and 2, 1984.

The Delhi High Court had sentenced him to life imprisonment in that case, and his appeal challenging the conviction is currently pending before the Supreme Court.