‘Missing’ 1984 SIT file troubles AAP

Delhi’s AAP government has landed in an embarrassing mess as a file on constitution of the Special Investigation Team to probe the 1984 anti-Sikh carnage is reportedly missing from its home department since March 16, 2015.

The file was reportedly marked to then city home minister Jitender Singh Tomar, now on bail in a case over his fake degrees.

The “missing file” issue surfaced at a critical juncture for the Aam Aadmi Party, as it plans to contest the 2017 Punjab Assembly elections.

The party won four of Punjab’s 13 Lok Sabha seats in 2014 with a 25 per cent voteshare. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal is himself canvassing for the Punjab polls.

The missing file issue surfaced after deputy secretary (home) Ashish Kumar issued a circular to all departments on January 8 requesting officers to “kindly look into their respective departments” and if the file was found “it may kindly be returned to the home department”.

The AAP government has time and again raised the 1984 anti-Sikh riots issue.

It had recently given an additional Rs 5 lakhs in compensation to families of the riot victims.

The party rewarded journalist Jarnail Singh, who threw his shoe at then Union minister P. Chidambaram at a press conference in 2009, by giving him a ticket to fight the Assembly elections in Delhi.

Mr Singh, who had defended his shoe-throwing by saying he was upset with the Congress for giving tickets to those accused of instigating the 1984 carnage, later won from Rajouri Garden.