December 7,2017:
Apex Court received views of Supervisory Committee comprising of Former Supreme Court Judges Justice J M Panchal and Justice K S P Radhakrishnan, which examined 241 cases.
On Wednesday, Supreme Court has stated that it would decide on December 11,2017 whether or not fresh prosecution should be launched in the 241 cases relating to 1984 anti-Sikh riots, which were closed by Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up by NDA government in February 2015.
SC Bench comprising of CJI Dipak Misra and Justice A M Khanwilkar and Justice D Y Chandrachud directed Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand and Petitioner’s Counsel Amardip Singh Bedi to assist Court in perusing Report of two-judge committee on December 11,2017.
Apex Court Bench stated that,“It is an extremely important matter as we have to determine whether SIT’s decision to close cases was appropriate or not. Supervisory Committee had earlier opined that cases may have been time barred for launching of the fresh prosecution. Let us see if there is any substance in facts mentioned in case files. If we find substance, we will order prosecution”.
Petitions were filed by S Gurlad Singh and Manjit Singh GK who had alleged that SIT had scrutinised 293 cases and closed 199 of them after scrutiny.
Petitioner's have further alleged that 42 more cases were closed after conducting the preliminary inquiry. Main impediment before SIT was tracing the witnesses willing to depose in these cases after a lapse of 35 years.
On August 16,2017, Supreme Court Bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra had constituted a supervisory body of the two former SC judges and had asked it to scrutinise the 241 matters which have been closed and express their view whether there was justification to close these cases.
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