The wife of the complainant Jaswant Singh and the prosecution had demanded the death penalty for Sajjan Kumar, but the court said that due to his (Sajjan Kumar’s) advanced age and illness, a lesser sentence has been given instead of the death penalty. Nevertheless, the wife of the complainant and deceased Jaswant Singh and the lawyers who helped him in this legal battle should be commended for the long struggle to bring the leader of the rioting mob to justice, convict him of murder and robbery and make him a part of the life sentence. The wounds of such massacres can never be healed, but with time, people learn to cope with and live with them. The court’s decision to sentence Sajjan Kumar will provide some reassurance to the victim’s families, who have been waiting for justice for four decades.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee and other Sikh organizations welcomed the sentencing of Delhi Sikh massacre convict Sajjan Kumar but termed it as delayed and incomplete justice. The Sikh organization has also demanded a high-level inquiry into the role of those who tried to protect the perpetrators of the Sikh massacre from punishment by giving them high positions.
It is surprising and sad that it took 40 years for the victim to get justice and according to Sikh organizations, even when justice has been given now, it has been given incompletely. According to Sikh organizations, Sajjan Kumar should have been given the death penalty for the crimes and atrocities he has committed. Sikh riot victims and Sikh organizations have welcomed the decision of the honorable court.
It is often said in India that justice comes too late, which is also evidenced by the above case. The victims of the Sikh massacre were demanding justice for more than 40 years, so now they have got some relief. Although there are still many cases, the culprits have not been punished yet. In many places, even cases have not been registered against the killers of Sikhs.
It is worth mentioning that after the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984, anti-Sikh riots broke out across the country including Delhi, which is called the Sikh genocide. More than thousands of Sikhs were killed in this genocide. It is surprising and sad that the victims of the Sikh genocide are still wandering for justice, even though in some cases, including the above case, the culprits have been punished. It is often said that justice given late is also injustice.
Various Sikh leaders are saying that after Sajjan Kumar, all the other culprits including Jagdish Tytler and Kamal Nath, the culprits of the Sikh genocide, should also be given severe punishment. The wounds of the victims of the Sikh genocide are still bleeding. The victims are also demanding that Sajjan Kumar’s property should also be attached in the case.
After Sajjan Kumar was sentenced to life imprisonment by the court, BJP leaders are trying to take credit for it. BJP leaders say that the previous Congress government kept saving the culprits of the Sikh massacre and rewarding them by giving them high positions, but it has become possible only during the BJP government that the culprits of the Sikh massacre are getting punishment. On the other hand, leaders of other political parties are saying that the decision of the honorable court to sentence Sajjan Kumar is commendable but there should be no attempt to take political advantage of it.
After the sentence given to Sajjan Kumar by the court, it has become clear that the cycle of justice in India, although slow, definitely moves. After the sentence given to Sajjan Kumar, there is now hope that the other culprits of the Sikh massacre will also be punished soon by the honorable court so that the victims of the massacre can get justice.
