Centre protecting anti-Sikh riot culprits, denying justice: AAP

New Delhi, Feb 21 (IANS) The AAP on Tuesday accused the BJP-led central government of denying justice to the 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims and shielding Congress leaders involved in the riots.

Talking to reporters here, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Jarnail Singh said the Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government had failed to file even a single chargesheet in the case over the last two years.

Referring to the Supreme Court's remarks made on Monday that it wanted another panel to monitor the SIT probe, he said it proved AAP's stand that central government was protecting the Congress leaders involved in the riots.

"Thirty-two years have passed (since the riots)... We want to ask the Modi government if the victims will have to wait another 32 years for justice," Singh asked.

The SIT, set up in February 2015, is probing the cases that were earlier closed for lack of sufficient evidence.

Singh said the AAP, in its election manifesto, had promised to order probe into the riots but Narendra Modi-led central government set up an SIT "to protect the culprits" just two days before AAP came to power in Delhi on February 14, 2015.

After formation, the SIT was given six months' time to fulfil its mandate. On August 12, 2015, it was given an extension of one year.

The Supreme Court had last month sought a comprehensive status report on the probe.

In Delhi alone, 2,733 people were killed in the riots triggered by the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by two of her Sikh bodyguards.

(This story has not been edited by Social News XYZ staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)