Sajjan Kumar, former Congress MP convicted in anti-Sikh riots case, passes away

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Sajjan Kumar resigned from Congress after his 2018 conviction in 1984 anti-Sikh killings case. File | Photo Credit: PTI

Former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar, who was serving life sentence in connection with the 1984 anti-Sikh killings in Delhi, died on Thursday (August 20, 2026) in Safdarjung Hospital, sources told The Hindu .

Safdarjung Hospital stated that, Sajjan Kumar, aged 81 years, was brought to VMMC & Safdarjung Hospital by Police with altered sensorium around 11:00 a.m. He was immediately admitted and resuscitation measures were initiated. Despite providing all necessary medical and life-support measures, he could not be saved and passed away at 12:30 p.m.

He was a known case of high blood pressure and Parkinson’s disease and had a history of multiple hospital admissions in the past, said Safdarjung Hospital in a statement.

Kumar was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Delhi High Court on December 17, 2018, in a case related to the killing of five Sikhs and the burning of a gurdwara during the 1984 anti-Sikh killings.

Citing the “absence of credible evidence” against him, a Delhi court on January, 2026 acquitted former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar in a case related to violence in the Janakpuri area during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

Despite the acquittal, Kumar was lodged in Tihar Jail as he was serving life sentences in other cases related to the 1984 riots. In 2018, the Delhi High Court awarded him life imprisonment for the killing of five Sikhs in Palam Colony, a verdict currently under challenge in the Supreme Court. In February 2024, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in another case relating to the murder of Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh in Saraswati Vihar.

Kumar, a three-time Lok Sabha member, represented the Outer Delhi constituency and had been a prominent Congress leader. He resigned from the party after his 2018 conviction.

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