Sajjan Kumar, a three-term Lok Sabha member and once a powerful leader of Delhi Congress, whose political career was eclipsed by his conviction in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots cases, died at Safdarjung Hospital here on Thursday (August 20, 2026).He was 81.Mr. Kumar, who was serving a life sentence in Tihar Jail, was taken to hospital after his health deteriorated and was declared brought dead. He had been in custody since December 2018, when he surrendered following the Delhi High Court’s decision to overturn his acquittal in a case relating to the killing of five members of a Sikh family and the burning of a gurdwara.His death has left the Congress with a political dilemma, ahead of the Punjab Assembly election. The party has maintained a conspicuous silence on his death, with no immediate condolence from its top leadership. The slow, tortuous path to justice: Sajjan Kumar’s convictionPawan Khera, chairman of the Congress’s media and publicity department, was the only prominent party functionary to publicly condole the death, expressing sympathy to Mr. Kumar’s family.The muted response reflected the political sensitivity surrounding Mr. Kumar’s name, particularly in Punjab, where the memory of the 1984 violence remains a deeply emotive issue.