On Wednesday (October 26), the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) accused the Congress party of continuing to back the perpetrators of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
Delhi BJP spokesperson Tajinder Bagga took to Twitter to share that Jagdish Tytler was present at the AICC headquarters in the national capital when Mallikarjun Kharge was elected Congress president. He lambasted the party for its “love” for “killers of Sikhs” by posting a picture of Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Meira Kumar sitting in the same room as Jagdish Tytler.
“Congress invited Killers of Sikhs Jagdish Tytler as Special guest in oath ceremony of Mallikarjun Kharge. Congress and Sonia Gandhi’s love for Killers of Sikhs proved once again,” he tweeted.
Congress invited Killers of Sikhs Jagdish Tytler as Special guest in oath ceremony of Mallikarjun Khadge. Congress and Sonia Gandhi love for Killers of Sikhs proved once again pic.twitter.com/iRhhgeNrV7
— Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga (@TajinderBagga) October 26, 2022
BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa also slammed the Gandhi family for patronizing the anti-Sikh riots accused. “By inviting Tytler, the murderer of Sikhs, to be the chief guest at Kharge ji’s oath ceremony, the Gandhi family demonstrated once more that they will continue to protect and honor Tytler, Kamal Nath. The Gandhi family carried out the 1984 Sikh massacre with the help of these killers and continues to reward these people to this day,” Sirsa tweeted.
गांधी परिवार ने सिखों के कातिल टाइटलर को खड़गे जी के शपथ समारोह में मुख्य मेहमान बुलाकर फिर से ये साबित कर दिया कि वे टाइटलर, कमलनाथ जैसो को सुरक्षा व मान देते रहेंगे।
— Manjinder Singh Sirsa (@mssirsa) October 26, 2022
इन्हीं कातिलो की मदद से गाँधी परिवार ने 1984 सिख क़त्लेआम को अंजाम दिया और आज तक इन लोगों को उसका ईनाम दे रहा है pic.twitter.com/NsLZCYhZcg
One of the accused former Congress MPs, Jagdish Tytler, told CNN IBN that he traveled around in Delhi with former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi following Indira Gandhi’s death and found that his entire area was peaceful. According to CNN News, the Akali Dal and BJP criticized Tytler and questioned whether Rajiv was also involved in stirring unrest.
The Nanavati commission accused the former MP as one of the riot organizers. In addition, the accused had refused to undergo lie detector tests. The 1984 anti-Sikh riots erupted in the aftermath of the assassination of then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and culminated in the horrific killings of over 2800 people, according to government data. Congress leaders Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler were accused of a direct role in instigating the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in India.
Jagdish Tytler was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1991 and served as the Union Minister of State for Surface Transport until being re-elected in 2004. He was only dropped in 2009 due to the controversy over his actions in the 1984 riots.
Congress party has always had the policy of patronizing the accused of the anti-Sikh riots. Kamal Nath, another Congress leader accused of leading the violent mob, was appointed chief minister of Madhya Pradesh in 2018. Prior to it, he was elected nine times from Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara Lok Sabha seat and handled several portfolios. Kamal Nath is accused of leading a violent mob attack on Gurdwara Rakabgunj on November 1, 1984, in which the mob had burnt two Sikhs, a father, and a son alive.
The CBI gave a clean chit to Tytler during the second term of the UPA government. However, the closure report was rejected by a Sessions Court, and an investigation into his role was requested. Despite public calls to cut relations with Tytler, Congress has frequently accommodated him on a public platform. In January 2019, Congress was criticized for granting Tytler a front-row seat during the ceremony of former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit taking over as Delhi Congress chief on January 16, 2019.
Sajjan Kumar, another senior Congress leader who was in the party till 2018, was convicted of his role in the 1984 riots and was sentenced to life imprisonment by Delhi High Court.
