Riot victim told to file appeal against Bhagat

The Delhi high court on Thursday directed Darshan Kaur, victim of the riots in 1984 following the killing of then prime minister Indira Gandhi, to file her petition seeking cancellation of the bail of former Union minister H K L Bhagat in the special riot court.

Justice Anil Dev Singh thus dismissed the petition of Darshan Kaur, a riot victim who deposed against the former Congress leader from east Delhi, charged with murdering several Sikhs during the riots.

In her petition, Darshan Kaur had sought the cancellation of Bhagat's bail plea on the grounds that making use of his freedom, the former Union minister was threatening and harassing witnesses in the case.

The court asked the riot victim to approach the special court of O P Dwivedi, which was the appropriate court to deal with the matter.

Darshan Kaur had moved the high court with the plea after the latter had imposed a stay on the proceedings in the court of Additional Sessions Judge S N Dhingra, whom Bhagat had claimed was biased against him.

Darshan Kaur deposed against Bhagat and had identified him in the trial court, which took immense importance as the other key witness in the case, Satnami Bai, backtracked from her statement against Bhagat. Later, Satnami Bai stated that she was forced by the former Congress leader to change her statement.

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