1984 anti-Sikh riots: Delhi court directs CBI to frame charges against Jagdish Tytler

The Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi on Friday directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to frame charges against Congress leader Jagdish Tytler in a 1984 anti-Sikh riots case that resulted in the death of three persons.

The court said that there is sufficient material to frame the charges against the accused Congress leader. It found that the trial against Jagdish Tytler can be proceeded under sections 143, 147 153A, 188, 295, 436, 451, 380, 149, 302 and 109 of the Indian Penal Code.

The case pertains to the killing of three Sikhs near the Gurudwara Pul Bangash and arson in the religious place in 1984. This incident occurred after the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

What the CBI chargesheet said

In its charge sheet filed in May 2023, the CBI had accused Tytler, a former Union minister, of “inciting, instigating and provoking the mob” which had assembled near the Pul Bangash gurdwara on November 1, 1984.

According to a witness, it was alleged that Tytler stepped out of a white Ambassador car in front of the gurudwara and incited the crowd by shouting, "Kill the Sikhs, they have murdered our mother!" The mob, already angered by the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards the previous day, then killed three people.

Most witnesses said they failed to hear what Tytler told the mob but they saw him alight from the car and make a speech that triggered the rampage, reported PTI.

In August of last year, a sessions court granted Tytler anticipatory bail in the case, requiring a personal bond of ₹1 lakh and a surety of the same amount.

The central probe agency has invoked charges under Sections 147 (rioting), 109 (abetment) read with 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), among others, against Tytler.

(To be updated further)