New Delhi:
Justice is catching up with 1984 anti-Sikh riots accused, Sajjan Kumar. An anticipatory bail plea comes up for hearing in the Delhi High Court today.
On that verdict will depend the Congress leader's next course of action. With a non-bailable warrant issued on Wednesday, will Sajjan surrender if the High Court denies him bail?
A Delhi court had issued the non-bailable warrant against him yesterday, after he did not appear in court in connection with two cases.
This means that the CBI is free to arrest him, though the investigative agency is unlikely to seek his custody, as its investigation is complete.
The trial court, which used strong words to decry Sajjan Kumar's non-appearance on Wednesday, has given the CBI time till February 23 to produce Sajjan Kumar and other accused before it.
There appeared a strong likelihood of Sajjan's arrest yesterday when the Delhi High Court refused to stop his arrest while it deferred hearing on his anticipatory bail plea till today.
Soon thereafter, the trial court issued the non-bailable warrant.
Sajjan was scheduled to appear before the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate in Karkardooma, on summons issued by the court on February 1, at about 3 p.m. on Wednesday. But he did not turn up and his lawyer sought exemption from personal appearance as he said Sajjan's bail plea was pending before the High Court.
The Karkardooma court dismissed this petition, observing that as the High Court did not issue a stay order, Sajjan and five other accused were duty bound to appear before the court "which they have miserably failed to do".
The High Court will give verdict on Sajjan's plea for bail on Thursday.
The CBI had chargesheeted 13 people, including Kumar, on January 13 in two separate 1984 riots cases for allegedly making provocative speeches, leading to the killing of 12 people in the violence that broke out following the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
The probe agency had filed chargesheets in court after concluding its investigation into the cases registered on the recommendation of the Nanavati Commission in 2005.
The Delhi court had ordered Sajjan Kumar to appear in person in connection with the two separate cases. Sajjan has sought anticipatory bail in both cases. The trial court had on February 15 refused to grant him anticipatory bail.
The anticipatory bail plea of seven other co-accused has been rejected.