New Delhi: Congress leader Jagdish Tytler instigated the mob to kill Sikhs near Gurudwara Pul Bangash, the Central Bureau of Investigation’s charge sheet against him, filed on May 20 said. “Tytler provoked the mob to kill the Sikhs which resulted in Gurudwara Pul Nabgash being set on fire by the mob and killing of three persons belonging to Sikh community on 1.11.1984”, the CBI said, adding that he incited the mob.
The CBI chargesheet quotes a witness saying she saw the Congress leader getting out of his car and instigating the mob.
Jagdish Tytler is a former Indian politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from the New Delhi constituency from 1984 to 2004. He is a member of the Indian National Congress (INC) party.
Tytler has been accused of inciting and participating in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots that broke out in Delhi following the assassination of Indira Gandhi. He has been charged with murder and rioting in connection with the deaths of five Sikhs in the Trilokpuri area of Delhi.
The first charge sheet against Tytler was filed in 1991, but he was acquitted by a trial court in 2000. However, the Delhi High Court overturned the acquittal in 2005 and ordered a fresh trial. The case is still ongoing.
Tytler has denied all charges against him and has claimed that he is the victim of a political witch hunt. He has also accused the police of tampering with evidence and witnesses.
The 1984 anti-Sikh riots were a series of pogroms against Sikhs in India that took place in the aftermath of the assassination of Indira Gandhi. The riots left over 3,000 Sikhs dead and thousands more injured.
The riots were a major setback for India’s secular image and have had a lasting impact on Sikh-Hindu relations. The case against Tytler is seen as a test case for the Indian government’s commitment to bringing to justice those responsible for the 1984 riots.
In 2022, the Delhi High Court ordered a fresh look into the evidence against Tytler. The court said that there were “serious contradictions” in the evidence presented by the prosecution and that the case needed to be investigated further.