Delhi Court Sentences Sajjan Kumar to Double Life Imprisonment

On 25 Feb, the special Rouse Avenue Court, New Delhi sentenced former Indian National Congress (INC) leader Sajjan Kumar double life imprisonment for the murder of Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh in Delhi's Saraswati Vihar during the 1984 Sikh genocide. Kumar is already serving a life sentence in Tihar Jail for the killing of five Sikhs at Raj Nagar. The First Information Report in the case was filed in 1991. Advocates Harvinder Singh Phoolka, Kamna Vohra, Gurbax Singh, and their team fought the case in the court headed by Justice Kaveri Baweja. After the sentence, Advocate Phoolka said, 'Two life sentences have been awarded. One for the murders and another for arson and looting of homes. In the case of beating up Jaswant Singh’s wife (name withheld), Kumar has been sentenced another 10 years. In their judgement, the judge responded to both the survivor families and the Indian Union government demand for death sentence to Kumar. The judge took cognisance of the Tihar jail report that Kumar is 80 years old, has many illnesses, cannot carry out his daily ablutions. That is why he has been sentenced to double life imprisonment, not death. This is equivalent to daily death for Kumar.' In total Kumar is now serving three life sentences. Ironically, Indian mainstream media is saying it is one sentence for two murders. The case will have bearings on another ongoing case against INC leader Jagdish Tytler. Separately, during the hearing on a Public Interest Litigation filed in 2016 by Gurlad Singh Kahlon, on implementation of Justice Shiv Narain Dhingra committee’s recommendations on 1984 Sikh genocide cases, India’s Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati told the Bench that Delhi Police will challenge six past acquittals.