1984 riot cases: Sajjan Kumar gets anticipatory bail

The Delhi High Court on Friday granted anticipatory bail to former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar and six others in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots cases.

Justice A.K. Pathak, while pronouncing the bail order, directed them to furnish a personal and surety bond of Rs. 50,000 each.

The court had on February 22 reserved its order on the anticipatory bail plea of Kumar and others accused Mahendra Yadav, Brahmanand Gupta, Krishan Khokhar, Balwant Khokhar, Peru and Ved Prakash, who have been chargesheeted by the CBI.

A lower court had issued non-bailable warrants against the 64-year-old Kumar and others after they failed to appear before it on summons.

The politician had pleaded he was being harassed by the CBI after he had appeared before the investigating agency many times in the past, but it had not then felt the need to arrest him.

The former Outer Delhi MP had reportedly gone missing since February 19, leading to suspension of his Personal Security Officer (PSO) by the Delhi Police.

The CBI had on February 23 informed the court that they could not arrest Kumar as he could not be located, prompting the judge to slam the investigating agency for "not being serious in apprehending" the Congress leader.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Lokesh Kumar Sharma had earlier on February one issued summons against Kumar and 12 others after taking cognisance of the two chargesheets filed against them in the 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases.

The probe agency had filed the chargesheets in the court after concluding its investigation into the cases registered on the recommendation of the Nanavati Commission in 2005.

The cases, in which the chargesheets were filed against Kumar and several others, were registered in police stations in Sultanpuri and Delhi Cantonment following the killing of seven and five persons respectively in the riots.