Sajjan Kumar handed life imprisonment in 1984 anti-Sikh riots case
What's the story
A special court has sentenced former Congress leader Sajjan Kumar to life imprisonment in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case.
The verdict was pronounced on Tuesday, a month after he was convicted on February 12 for instigating violence during the riots.
The court had found him guilty of murder in the deaths of Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh in Delhi's Saraswati Vihar on November 1, 1984.
Riot involvement
Kumar's role in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots
The 1984 anti-Sikh riots were sparked by the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards on October 31, 1984.
The violence was in response to Operation Blue Star, a military operation against Sikh militants in Amritsar's Golden Temple earlier that year.
Kumar, a powerful Congress MP then, was accused of leading mobs that perpetrated genocide and crimes against humanity during the riots.
Penalty request
Complainant sought death penalty for Kumar
The complainant in this case, who lost her husband and son to the violence allegedly incited by Kumar, had sought the maximum punishment of death for him.
Senior advocate HS Phoolka argued that "the accused, as the leader of the mob, incited others to carry out genocide, crimes against humanity, and cold-blooded murders."
He stressed that Kumar deserved "nothing less than the death penalty."
Legal history
Kumar's previous conviction and ongoing appeal
Separately, Kumar had also been convicted by the Delhi High Court for five murders in another case linked to the riots in Delhi Cantonment's Raj Nagar area.
His appeal in that case is still pending before the Supreme Court.
The Nanavati Commission noted that 587 FIRs were registered in Delhi in connection with these riots, which claimed 2,733 lives.
Of these, only 28 were convicted.