Supreme Court Defers 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots Case Appeals

The Supreme Court has postponed the hearing of appeals by Sajjan Kumar and Balwan Khokhar related to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. The deferment happened as Solicitor General Tushar Mehta was unavailable. The case's history includes Kumar's overturned acquittal and Khokhar's upheld life sentence.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday delayed the hearing of appeals by former Congress leader Sajjan Kumar and Balwan Khokhar, a former party councillor, regarding their sentences in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case.

The adjournment was announced by a bench of Justices J K Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi, who noted the absence of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, the representative for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Khokhar's appeal follows the Delhi High Court upholding his life sentence in 2018, while overturning Kumar's 2013 trial court acquittal. The case relates to the murders of five Sikhs and the burning of a gurdwara in southwest Delhi, shortly after Indira Gandhi's assassination.

(With inputs from agencies.)