Amnesty seeks justice for 1984 riot victims

New Delhi, June 23: Amnesty Intertiol on Thursday said successive Indian governments had “failed” in giving justice to 1984 riot victims despite “evidence of political and police complicity” in killing of thousands of Sikhs following the assassition of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

“The survivors and victims of 1984 have not received justice primarily because successive governments have failed to take action (against those involved),” Aakar Patel, the Executive Director at Amnesty Intertiol India, said. Patel was speakikng at an event “Insaaf84” held here as as part of Amnesty Intertiol India’s two-year long “Chaurasi Ki a Insaafi” campaign. The rights group and civil society members made a series of recommendations related to “effective investigations, comprehensive remedy and reparation, and legal and police reform,” to be submitted to the Home Ministry. Patel urged the Bharatiya Jata Party (BJP)-led NDA government to “filly deliver justice to the thousands who suffered in 1984”.

“It must not waste this opportunity,” he said.

Human rights lawyer, Vrinda Grover said: “Accountability of persons in public office and in positions of authority is imperative for justice for the 1984 survivors. And for this, India needs to adopt elements of modern crimil jurisprudence.” H.S. Phoolka, the human rights lawyer representing families of the victim and survivors of the massacre, said: “Nearly a year and a half after the SIT was set up (by the current government), it has not met a single survivor or witness.” The Delhi Police had closed investigations in most of the cases even as more than 3,000 Sikhs were said to have been massacred during three days of the riots on Delhi roads after Indira Gandhi was shot dead by her Sikh security guards. (IANS)