Other former colleagues who were present near the hospital included former Nangloi MLA Bijender Singh and Delhi Mahila Congress leader Pushpa Satbir Singh. Express photo by Abhinav SahaA group of around 30 supporters gathered outside the police chowki near Safdarjung Hospital after news of the death of former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar, convicted in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Delhi, spread on Thursday.Kumar, who had been lodged in Delhi’s Tihar Jail since he was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2018, died at Safdarjung Hospital on Thursday afternoon.According to a statement from the hospital, he had been brought in by police at around 11 am with an “altered sensorium.” The statement added that Kumar, who suffered from multiple ailments including blood pressure issues and Parkinson’s disease, died around 12:30 pm.By Thursday evening, his family was waiting inside the police chowki near the hospital while the legal procedures required for the release of his body, since he died in custody, were completed.The crowd outside numbered around 30 people, most of them former supporters from his days as an influential Delhi Congress leader. Kumar was elected to the Lok Sabha from Outer Delhi three times since 1980, but resigned from the party in December 2018 after being convicted in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. The case was related to the killing of five Sikhs at Raj Nagar Part I in Palam Colony on November 1-2, 1984, and the burning down of a gurdwara in Raj Nagar Part II.Among those present was his 65-year-old long-time personal secretary, Kailash Khurana, who had accompanied him to every court hearing over the years.Incidentally, Kumar’s appeal against his 2018 sentencing was scheduled to be heard on Thursday.“His hearing was listed for today. He was in very poor health,” Khurana said.Other former colleagues who were present near the hospital included former Nangloi MLA Bijender Singh and Delhi Mahila Congress leader Pushpa Satbir Singh.“We will leave the house with the body in the morning tomorrow. It’ll be kept at Madipur, in his former office,” said Bijender Singh. Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023. Professional Background Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University. Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories. Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts. Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials. Recent notable articles In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories. 1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey. 2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation. 3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police. Signature Style Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public. X (Twitter): @Nirbhaya99 ... Read MoreStay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on InstagramTags:New DelhiSajjan Kumar