New Delhi: Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought a reply from the Central Bureau of Investigation after allegations surfaced that Congress leader Jagdish Tytler tried to influence a witness in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. Court has sought details of action taken.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate SPS Laler sought CBI's response on the statement recorded by the agency of jailed businessman Abhishek Verma during its further investigation in the riots case.
The court, which was hearing arguments on CBI's closure report filed in the case against Tytler, has now fixed the matter for June 26.
During the hearing, senior advocate HS Phoolka, representing the riots victims, apprised the court that Verma in his statement had told CBI that Tytler had allegedly struck a deal with Surinder Kumar Granthi, who was a prime witness in the case and had deposed against the Congress leader about his involvement in the case.
"As per the deal, hefty amount was paid to Surinder (who has died) besides settling his son Narinder Singh abroad. He (Tytler) also told me (Verma) that he had mounted pressure on Narinder who in turn was to put pressure on his father Surinder to change his statement in favour of Jagdish Tytler," Verma had told CBI.
Verma had alleged in his statement that in 2010, Tytler had sent Rs 5 crore to his sister who lives in Canada and the money was sent through hawala and when the amount reached the account of a trust, it was frozen by the concerned bank.
CBI has also recorded statement of Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan in the case.
On the agency's clean chit to Tytler, Phoolka said that he will file a protest petition against the closure report.
On April 22, the court had fixed June 3 for hearing the closure report filed for the third time by the CBI in the case against Tytler. The court had earlier said "perusal of records revealed that the cancellation report was also filed earlier as regards accused Jagdish Tytler".
The court had also issued notice to complainant and victim Lakhvinder, whose husband Badal Singh was killed during the riots, on the closure report.
CBI had said it has conducted further probe in the case, as directed by a sessions court, and filed a closure report in the matter.
In April 2013, CBI was directed by a sessions court to further investigate the case as it set aside its earlier closure report.
Expressing displeasure over the CBI's move of filing the closure report, counsel for the riot victims had said, "Why is it being done so secretly? Even the complainant has not been informed about it. It has been filed secretly.
"This shows an attempt has been made to get the closure report accepted by the court in hush-hush manner."
The closure report was filed in the court on December 24, 2014 and a notice was issued to the complainant.
The sessions court had on April 10, 2013 set aside CBI'sclosure report giving clean chit to Tytler and ordered reopening of investigation into the killing of three persons. The court's 2013 order had come on a plea by the riot victims who had sought the court's direction to CBI to further probe the case to ascertain Tytler's alleged role in riots, which was opposed by the investigating agency.
CBI had sought dismissal of the victim's plea saying the probe made it clear that Tytler was not present on November 1, 1984 at Gurudwara Pulbangash in North Delhi where three people were killed during the riots and was rather at Teen Murti Bhawan, where Indira Gandhi's body was lying in state.
Tytler's alleged role in the case relating to the killing of three persons -- Badal Singh, Thakur Singh and Gurcharan Singh -- near Gurudwara Pulbangash was re-investigated by the CBI after a court had in December 2007 refused to accept its closure report.
Another accused Suresh Kumar Paniwala, who faced trial for the offences of murder and inciting the mob during the riots, was acquitted by a Delhi court in 2014.
CBI had again given a clean chit to Tytler on April 2, 2009 claiming lack of evidence against him in the case pertaining to the murder of three persons on November 1, 1984, in the aftermath of the assassination of Indira Gandhi.
However, on April 27, 2010, a magistrate had accepted CBI's closure report in the case against Tytler, saying there was no evidence to put him on trial. Some of the witnesses had alleged that during the riots, Tytler was instigating the mob to kill Sikhs, a charge strongly refuted by him.
(With additional information from PTI)
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