Trial against Sajjan Kumar in anti-Sikh riots case to go on: Supreme Court

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court made it clear that the trial proceedings against Congress leader Sajjan Kumar and others in the killing of six persons during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots will go on during pendency of their plea before it on quashing of charges against them.

"We are not staying the trial proceedings," a bench headed by Justice A K Patnaik said when it was told that Kumar and others should not seek adjournment in the trial court on the ground of pendency of their plea in the apex court.

The bench deferred the hearing till October 28. It was hearing pleas filed by Kumar, Brahmanad Gupta and other accused challenging the trial court and the Delhi High Court orders turning down their plea for quashing of charges against them.

Dismissing the plea of Kumar, the high court had affirmed the trial court's order saying charges could be framed if there is a strong suspicion leading the court to think that there is ground for presuming that the accused has committed the offence.

The high court, however, refused to frame the additional charge of conspiracy against him and co-accused Ved Prakash Pial and Gupta saying there is "no evidence to show the meeting of minds".

The court also rejected the pleas of Pial and Gupta challenging the framing of charges against them.

"It is a settled law that at the initial stage if there is a strong suspicion which leads the court to think that there is ground for presuming that the accused has committed the offence, a charge would be framed," the High Court had said.