Amid opposition demands for immediately bringing to book culprits of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Government on Wednesday described the incident as "one of the most tragic events" and assured Lok Sabha that it would do its best under the given circumstances.
"Everyone of us feels ashamed that this happened. ...We cannot get back the lives we lost, we cannot remove the agony (of those affected) ... We can take a vow and draw a lesson that in future this does not happen," Leader of the Lok Sabha Pranab Mukherjee said.
He was responding to Harsimrat Kaur (SAD) who raised the issue spiritedly during the Zero Hour, lamenting that 25 years after the ghastly incidents in which, she claimed, 7,000 Sikhs were killed, no one has been punished.
Mukherjee admitted that Kaur had brought back memories of "one of the most tragic events".
Kaur was supported by the entire opposition, led by Leader of Opposition L K Advani, following which Mukherjee assured them that he would speak to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other colleagues and see "what best can be done under the given situation".
She regretted that despite the Nanavati Commission recommending registration of cases against Congress leader Sajjan Kumar and others in 2005, no case was registered. "CBI has still not filed a single chargesheet".
Amid cries of 'shame, shame' from opposition benches, Kaur said so many commissions and committees have been appointed but no guilty has been brought to book so far.
Noting that this has happened despite 11 eye-witnesses giving statements before magistrates, she said "no community in our country should ever live by the fear of another community".
Kaur asserted that all communities had equal stake in the country and steps should be taken to "uphold secularism".
Advani suggested that government set up a small parliamentary committee to go into the issue for quick action, "leaving aside all old issues". JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav, along with leaders of Left parties, BSP, SP and BJD, also supported early action in the case. PTI
