NEW DELHI: In a significant judgment the Delhi High Court has quashed a notification of the Delhi administration appointing the Jain-Bannerji commission to look into the riots of November 1984 following Indira Gandhi’s assassination.
A two man bench of Justice Kirpal and Chowdhry said the government must take suitable Steps to bring the guilty to book. But the administration had no power to issue an executive order or issue a notification conferring powers of investigation on a non- police officer. Such a committee was contrary to the criminal procedure code and the Delhi police act the Justices felt.
Many victims of the mass murder had pinned much hope of get- ting justice from this panel. Our hopes have been belied, said one of the widows. It was a trick to fool us… there will never be justice for Sikhs in India, she cried.
The Jain-Banerjee Committee, appointed in February 1987 by Delhi’s Lt Governor on recommendations from Justice Ranganath Mishra Commission, was empowered to oversee investigations register cases and initiate prosecution in all criminal cases related to the November 1984 riots. At least 9,000 people are believed to have been killed during the riots. So far out of all the cases registered by the police the trial courts had announced verdicts in 11 cases while the Administration has filed a counter appeal of ten.
The Jain Banerjee Committee Was taken to court when it recommended in October 1987 the arrests of Congress (I) worker Brahmandan Gupta former Congress Member of Parliament Sajjan Ku- mar and six others for their alleged involvement in the 1984 riots.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 13, 1989
