New Delhi: A Delhi court on Wednesday said it will hear on June 3 CBI's closure report in a case against Congress leader Jagdish Tytler in connection with 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) Saurabh Pratap Singh Laler supplied the copy of the closure report to the complainant in the case and fixed the matter for June 3.
On that day, complainant and victim Lakhvinder, whose husband Badal Singh was killed during the riots, is likely to file a protest petition challenging CBI's closure report.
The court had earlier issued notice to the complainant on the closure report. Complainant's counsel, however, could not appear in the case as the lawyers are observing strike in all the six district courts in New Delhi.
The court had earlier said "perusal of records revealed that the cancellation report was also filed earlier as regards accused Jagdish Tytler".
This was the third time that Tytler was given a clean chit in the case by the investigating agency. 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, senior advocate HS Phoolka, representing 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's closure report giving clean chit to Tytler and ordered reopening of investigation into the killing of three persons.
The court had found fault in the investigation by the agency which had not examined the available witnesses. The court's 2013 order had come on a plea by the riot victims against CBI giving a clean chit to Tytler and filing a closure report.
The victims had sought the court's direction to CBI to further probe the case to ascertain Tytler's alleged role in the riots, which was opposed by the investigating agency.
CBI had sought dismissal of the victim's plea saying the probe has 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.
