The Supreme Court has ordered the appointment of a new three-member Special Investigating Team to probe 186 anti-Sikh riot cases. Judicial intervention is possibly the only way the families of the victims and survivors who suffered trauma in late-1984 can get a modicum of justice. These cases were closed by an earlier SIT without any probe conducted, that was established after judicial scrutiny by a court-appointed supervisory panel. There’s no clarity on what can be expected from fresh probes over 33 years after one of the most shameful moments in free India’s history. But there’s no question that the cases, shoddily handled by investigators till now, must be pursued. At least 3,325 people were killed, with Delhi alone accounting for 2,733 deaths. It’s curious, though, that despite 12 inquiry panels being appointed, there’s no reason to believe that the victims have got justice.
Beyond the question of how long the fresh probes will continue and whether the Supreme Court can expect time-bound results after a transparent inquiry, it’s more important to ensure that the families of victims and survivors have been adequately compensated, even if the riots were in reaction to the assassination of a titanic national leader. While a formal apology may do its bit to assuage the hurt sentiments of a major community which bore the brunt, there’s no doubt that amelioration will lie in the government examining thoroughly if adequate compensation in money and jobs had been provided. The politics over the fallout of the terrible events of history will grind on, but it must not be allowed to get in the way of delivering justice to the victims.
