Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday asserted that by granting one-year extension to special investigation team (SIT) constituted to re-investigate 1984 anti-Sikh riots, the Narendra Modi led Central Government is pursuing “the old Congress policy of shielding culprits”.
“As per RTI information provided by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs to AAP’s RTI Cell in-charge Dinesh Chadha, it has come to light that the Modi-led BJP government has granted one year extension to the SIT constituted to re-investigate 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases, without assigning any valid reason,” said AAP spokesperson Sukhpal Khaira.
Centre had constituted a SIT to re-investigate afresh 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases, vide order dated February 12, 2015, and it supposed to complete the investigations against all accused, after examining records afresh from all police stations concerned and also from the files of Justice JD Jain and DK Aggarwal Committee within six months, from February 12 to August 12, 2015.
“Unfortunately, the SIT failed to make any meaningful progress in the said investigations, after which the Union Ministry of Home Affairs extended the term of SIT for one full year, that is August 11, 2016,” he said.
Khaira maintained that as per the RTI information, the Ministry has failed to specify why it is extending the tenure of SIT by one year, as the MHA neither served any notice, letter or show cause to the SIT before extending its tenure.
“A careful perusal of the circumstances and information provided under RTI only goes to show that the Modi government is totally negligent and non-serious to pursue the said investigations. It is only pursuing the old agenda of the erstwhile Congress governments to shield and protect the guilty of 1984 anti-Sikh riots,” he said.
Another reason for the Modi government to slow down the SIT, is involvement of senior BJP and RSS functionaries in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, he added.
AAP dared the SAD and the Badals to clarify the “studied “silence being maintained by them over the slow peddling of SIT, constituted to ensure justice to the victims of 1984 anti-Sikh riots for over 31 years now.
“AAP, keeping in view the willful denial of justice to the victims by the BJP and SAD governments, demands completion of re-investigations by SIT on the stipulated time. In case SIT fails to probe the issue within the time frame, it would be presumed that both BJP and SAD have been playing cheap politics over a sensitive issue like 1984 anti-Sikh riots merely for votes and are not sincere to resolve the issue,” said Khaira.