Former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a letter to Lieutenant-Governor Najeeb Jung on Wednesday requested him to officially notify setting up of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. Earlier, the Aam Aadmi Party-led Government had announced its intentions to set up a SIT in keeping with the promise that the party had made in its election manifesto.

In a letter to Mr. Jung, the AAP convenor stated that earlier this month the AAP Government had sent a proposal to him for setting up the SIT which Mr. Jung had approved. He asked that police officers be appointed from outside Delhi for a thorough and impartial probe of the “most brutal incident” in the Capital’s history.

A statement from the AAP said Mr. Kejriwal had also suggested the names of three senior IPS officers from outside the Capital, who could be appointed to head the SIT, which is required to submit its report within one year.

“Some of the witnesses are already old and setting up of the SIT is perhaps their last hope of getting justice in this country. Therefore, I request you to kindly expedite the setting up of this team,” Mr. Kejriwal stated.

“The AAP is of the firm opinion that both the Congress and the BJP are equally responsible for the lack of justice for 1984 riots victims. The Congress has tried every possible trick to save those who perpetrated and masterminded the riots,” said a statement from the party.

“The BJP, on the other hand, has used the riots as a political tool. It was in power in Delhi from 1993 to 1998 and at the Centre between 1998 and 2004. Except for shedding crocodile tears, this party did nothing concrete to ensure justice for the riot victims,” the statement added.