New York: A US court of appeals in New York has affirmed a district court’s order and dismissed Nov 1984 anti-Sikh violence case against Congress party president Sonia Gandhi for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.
“Upon due consideration whereof, it is hereby ordered, adjudged, and decreed that the judgment of the district court is affirmed” the court said in its order Tuesday. Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) filed a lawsuit in 2013 against Sonia Gandhi for allegedly shielding and protecting Congress party leaders accused of inciting violence against the Sikh community after the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
The three-judge panel affirmed the district court’s order that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction over plaintiffs’ claims because “all the relevant conduct took place outside the United States” in India. In June 2014, a federal judge had dismissed the class action lawsuit filed by SFJ and victims against Sonia Gandhi ruling that she is not liable under Torture Victims Protection Act (TVPA) and that the plaintiffs have no standing to bring the lawsuit. SFJ plans to file an appeal to challenge the summary order, according to Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, legal advisor to SFJ.
