Key witness in anti-Sikh riots case surfaces

Two months after the Central Bureau of Investigation had described him as untraceable, a key witness in a 1984 anti-Sikh riots case involving senior Congress leader Jagdish Tytler surfaced on Thursday in the United States and the investigating agency said it would record his statement if he comes to India.

The witness, Jasbir Singh, in California, told TV news channels that the CBI had never contacted him before and that he was ready to testify before a court in Delhi if he was assured security.

"The fact that you are talking to me means that I am accessible..." Singh told an interviewer.

Singh, who has filed several affidavits against Tytler, a former Union minister, before various commissions, told the channel that he was willing to testify, provided he and his family's safety was guaranteed.

He also claimed a Congress councillor had called him five months ago and asked him to change his statement or face dire consequences.

The CBI had on September 29 filed an affidavit in a Delhi court seeking the closure of the case against Tytler taking the plea that Singh was untraceable. The agency has been directed by a Delhi court to submit the address of Singh. CBI Director Vijay Shankar Singh told Times Now that the agency will record the evidence, further investigate and put it before the court.