IndiaPost.com - Jasbir Singh is a proclaimed offender: Tytler

India Post News Service

NEW DELHI: Former Congress Minister Jagdish Tytler told India Post in an exclusive interview on Tuesday that Jasbir Singh is a proclaimed offender, he had jumped bail, and the Delhi Police has been on the look out for him since 1997.

Shortly after a Delhi court directed the CBI to re-investigate the anti-Sikh riot case, Jagdish Tytler expressed doubts over the veracity of the affidavit of Jasbir Singh, who has expressed his desire to assist the investigating agency. Jasbir Singh, who is now in the US having sought political asylum there, had alleged that he saw Tytler inciting the mob outside the hospital at the Kingsway camp.

Jasbir had told the Nanavati Commission that after having dinner at Sucha Singh’s house in Outram Lines on November 3, 1984, he saw Tytler in a car rebuking the people standing in front of the TB hospital for not having done enough to kill the Sikhs. Tytler handed over copies of court documents to India Post which showed there is case against Jasbir Singh under FIR No. 129/97 dated 21-3-1997 u/s. 308/506/34 IPC which was registered in Police Station Indraprastha Estate, New Delhi.

The Proclaimed Offender order was passed by the Court of Additional Sessions Judge Rajiv Mehra on 21-1-2004. Tytler said that the statement of Jasbir made through several media channels that "I, Jagdish Tytler was present on 3-11-1984 at the gate of the T.B. Hospital is a fabricated lie. His statement in his affidavit stating that he was in S.Sucha Singh’s house on 3-11-1984 is also completely fictitious and false."

Tytler pointed to the fact that curfew was imposed in Kingsway Camp and Delhi, with shoot at sight orders, on November 2, 1984 night. "As such the statement that he saw me at 11 pm on November 3 is also a lie as neither Jasbir Singh nor Tytler could have been at the gate of the Hospital during curfew." Reading out from the Court papers, Tytler said that in actual fact Jasbir Singh "had assaulted and beaten up, with a sharp weapon, with intent to murder (u/s 308), to prevent the witness in the case from going to Court to depose in the case in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

He tried to stop them with a bribe of Rs. 24 lakhs by telling them not to give evidence against a political person who was involved in the 1984 riots. He threatened to kill Smt. Darshan Kaur, w/o late Ram Singh and her sister Smt. Kamlesh Kaur, w/o S. Bhajan Singh r/o P-171 Raghubir Nagar, Delhi; and when they refused, he not only assaulted them but also assaulted a Police officer who was protecting them."

Meanwhile, two witnesses have come up in support of Jagdish Tytler’s claim that he was not present in the North Delhi locality instigating riots against Sikhs following the assassination of Indira Gandhi in October 1984. Jasbir Singh had claimed that he had dinner at Sucha Singh’s house in Outram Lines on November 3, 1984 after which he saw he saw Tytler rebuking a group of people. Now the said Sucha Singh has in an affidavit denied knowing Jasbir Singh.

He told newspaper Midday, "Jasbir Singh says he had dinner at my place. When I don’t know him, how can he have dinner at my place," 85 year old Sucha Singh said. Another witness, Sardar Surinder Singh, Head Granthi Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara, Karol Bagh, has filed a case against the IBN CNN news channel for distorting/tampering his statement in which he was reported to have implicated Jagdish Tytler, whereas he claimed he had never mentioned the name of the Congress leader.

In a legal notice to the channel, he said he was shocked to see the interview telecast on their channel quoting him as saying, "Bhir se awaj aa rahi thi ki hamari maa ko mara hai to Sikhon ko maro" and that the name of Jagdish Tytler was attributed to the said statement. Surinder Singh notified that the CNN IBN had deliberately and with ulterior motives falsely included the name of Jagdish Tytler with the sole purpose to gain benefits. Surinder Singh has asked the channel to tender an apology for having telecast the said "fabricated" interview.