Kejriwal gives his prognosis as he releases compensation to Sikh families
New Delhi : Had the guilty been punished after the 1984 riots, communal incidents like those in Gujarat and Dadri would not have happened, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said as he handed over compensation of Rs five lakh each to 1,332 families affected by the anti-Sikh riots.
On the 31st anniversary of the anti-Sikh riots, the Chief Minister and his Deputy Manish Sisodia paid homage to those who lost their lives in the violence that erupted in the aftermath of the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
“The massacre of 1984 is a blot on the country. It is very sad to note that though every political party has shown its concern for these riots but even 31 years after the massacre, no culprit has been punished and no justice has been done to affected families,” he said. “Had the culprits of 1984 massacre been punished in time, then the riots of Gujarat, and recently incidents like Dadri could not have happened,” he added at the event in West Delhi’s Tilak Vihar area where he distributed enhanced compensation cheques of Rs five lakh each to the families who lost their loved ones.
The Chief Minister said he would look into whether his government has the powers to set up a special investigative team (SIT) “for awarding immediate justice” to those affected by the riots, and would “certainly” constitute it if he can. He further said that “peace and tranquility in the society is being disturbed and an atmosphere of communal hatred is being prepared and spread by divisive forces which has become a cause of concern to every Indian”.
However, victims’ kin today asserted that they wanted justice more than anything. “It is good that government has taken some initiative but three decades have passed since then, money can’t remove the memories of seeing your loved ones being burnt in front of your eyes. Punishing guilty is more important,” said Kartar Singh, who lost his father in the riots.
Wheelchair bound 75-year-old Kantra Rani, who lost her two sons in the riots, broke down while waiting in queue to get her compensation cheque and said, “for the past 31 years we have been living on a fragile hope of getting justice. What happened was barbaric. I lost my innocent sons. God will punish those who are guilty” Sisodia also expressed concern over “mounting tension and rising communal hatred” .
