Sajjan Kumar sentencing mars possible Cong-AAP tie-up ahead of LS polls

The sentencing of Congress leader Sajjan Kumar to life imprisonment for his role in the anti-Sikh riots of 1984 has cast a long shadow on the possibility of an alliance between the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress in Delhi for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Shortly after Kumar's conviction and sentencing by the Delhi High Court, the AAP came out strongly against the Congress, stating that the party had the blood of Sikhs on its hands just as the BJP has the blood of Muslims killed in the Gujarat riots on its hands.

“The court has said that the riots were completely state-sponsored....The whole world knows how the Congress misused state machinery to kill Sikhs,” said AAP spokesman Saurabh Bhardwaj.

Party leader and Delhi MLA Jarnail Singh criticised the Congress for choosing Kamal Nath as chief minister of Madhya Pradesh despite the leader facing allegations of being involved in the anti-Sikh violence. “Rahul Gandhi has said the Congress is not guilty of the riots. However, the high court has clearly said the riots had political patronage. Kamal Nath should not have been made chief minister,” he said.

Singh asked why the Congress had not yet ousted Kumar and Jagdish Tytler, another leader accused of being involved in the riots, from the party. “AAP is standing with the victims. Now, the Congress has to decide,” he said.

The AAP was also at pains to clarify that its Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh was not present at the swearing-in ceremony of Kamal Nath. It was prompt in putting out a statement, clarifying that Singh was not present in any of the Congress' functions today.

Since Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, for the first time, attended a meeting of opposition parties on December 10, there is speculation over the AAP and the Congress forming an alliance in Delhi for the Lok Sabha elections. It is learnt that the AAP had reached out to the Congress with an offer of two seats a few months back. While the central leadership of the Congress was learnt to be open to the idea of allying with the AAP, the state unit of the party, headed by Ajay Maken, was opposed to it.

However, in the light of Kumar's conviction, the AAP seems to be distancing itself from the Congress, at least for the time being. The demand for ouster of Kumar and Tytler from the party is being seen as a gesture on part of the AAP to keep the door ajar for a prospective pre-poll tie-up.

The Congress, meanwhile, was non-committal on acting against Kumar. Party spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said neither did Kumar hold any post in the party nor was he a minister. Singhvi also pointed out that Kumar had not been given a ticket to contest elections for many years.

Attempting to distance the Congress from the court order, Singhvi said, “It is a legal process. If a person is acquitted, he can be convicted later. And a person who has been convicted has the right to appeal against the order. The Congress is not at all connected to this.”