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O 251053Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9242
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 8204
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RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 8827
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC

UNCLAS NEW DELHI 000132 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KDEM IN
 
SUBJECT:  A SMALL STEP TOWARD ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THE 1984 ANTI-SIKH 
RIOTS 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed 
two chargesheets January 13 against senior Congress Party leader 
Sajjan Kumar for making provocative speeches and inciting mobs in 
the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Delhi.  While a positive step toward 
accountability and a possible attempt by the ruling Congress Party 
to address the past, the latest development is likely to be viewed 
as too little too late by most members of the Sikh community. END 
SUMMARY. 
 
A LONG JOURNEY 
----- 
 
¶2. (U) On January 13, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) 
filed two new chargesheets against Sajjan Kumar, a senior Congress 
Party leader and former Member of Parliament, in two cases related 
to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in New Delhi. (Note: The riots erupted 
in the capital after the assassination of former Prime Minister 
Indira Gandhi by two of her Sikh bodyguards, and over 3000 Sikhs 
lost their lives. End Note.) The CBI charged Kumar with making 
provocative speeches and instigating a mob of 300 people on November 
1, 1984 to kill members of the Sikh community in west Delhi and 
destroy their properties.  The charge sheet alleges that the mob's 
actions caused the deaths of 12 persons and the destruction and 
looting of much property. 
 
¶3. (U) In December 1994, the CBI had filed charges against Kumar and 
12 others for the murder of a Sikh man.  A trial court acquitted 
Kumar and the others in this case in 2002 due to the lack of 
evidence.  However, the CBI appealed the verdict in 2003 to the 
Delhi High Court, arguing that the lower court did not adequately 
consider the statements of prosecution witnesses.  In March 2007, 
the Delhi High Court admitted the CBI's appeal. 
 
¶4. (U) The Nanavati Commission, established by the GOI to 
investigate the anti-Sikh riots, had recommended registration of 
three cases against Kumar in 2005.  After finishing its examination 
of the commission's report, the CBI filed chargesheets in two cases 
and recommended closure of the third case for lack of sufficient 
evidence.  The court set January 18 for taking judicial action on 
the chargesheets, but the hearing has been postponed until February 
1 since the CBI failed to file the required annexes along with the 
chargesheets. 
 
"TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE" 
---- 
 
¶5. (U) Ravi Nair, Director of the South Asia Human Rights 
Documentation Center and prominent human rights expert asserted, 
"it's too little and too late."  He stressed that these cases will 
remain in judicial limbo for another twenty years and predicted that 
the cases will never see the light of day.  Nair believed Kumar was 
clearly responsible for the violence directed at the Sikhs, adding 
that the CBI attempted to arrest Kumar 15 years ago, but the police 
fudged the reports.  H.S. Phoolka, a lawyer who has represented riot 
victims, agreed that though this is a serious and strong case with 
evidence, he believes the CBI is not really serious about fully 
prosecuting the case. 
 
COMMENT:  POLITICALLY MOTIVATED? 
----- 
 
¶6. (SBU) The CBI filing is the latest effort to bring Sajjan Kumar, 
a well known face, to justice and demonstrate the party's sincerity 
in bringing closure to this painful episode of Indian history. 
While this may reflect the determination of the Congress Party and 
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to bring the perpetrators on the 1984 
Sikh riots to justice, minimal press attention devoted to the CBI's 
charge sheets reflect the public's cynicism.  Whatever the 
intentions, this action has earned little, if any, political capital 
for the UPA government.  In the past, PM Singh has publicly 
apologized to the Sikh community and ensured substantial 
compensation payments to victims and their families.  While this 
filing is a positive move toward accountability, the latest 
development is unlikely to assuage the grief felt by most Sikhs 
about the lack of accountability for the 1984 violence. 
 
 
ROEMER