Reopening of cases an eyewash: Phoolka

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, June 12

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader HS Phoolka said here today that the Centre’s move to reopen cases of the anti-Sikh riots was a political gimmick aimed at benefiting the SAD-BJP alliance in the Punjab Assembly elections.

“The alliance always raises this issue close to any elections but unfortunately forgets it after the polls,” he said.

According to reports, of the 237 riot cases that were closed because of non-availability of victims or lack of evidence, 75 are to be reopened. The special investigation team (SIT) will issue advertisements regarding these cases and ask the victims and the witnesses to join the probe.

“It’s a farce that the SIT first wasted one year and three months and will now give advertisements when the victims and the accused have already been traced. Its role was to carry out a time-bound investigation and file a chargesheet against the accused,” said Phoolka.

The advocate stated that the Centre was forced to act as AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal had written to the Modi government on February 10, 2015, that if the existing SIT was not functioning, it should be wounded up and AAP be allowed to set up a fresh SIT to reinvestigate the 237 cases.

Phoolka said the SIT was supposed to file its report on August 12, 2015, but to no avail.