Rohtak: Congress MP from Rohtak, Deepender Singh Hooda, on Sunday sought to clarify his remarks following the death of former party leader Sajjan Kumar, saying he did not use the words “role model” attributed to him.Addressing a news conference, Deepender said he had not made any statement intended to hurt the sentiments of the Sikh community and that his remarks were presented out of context.“My family has long been associated with the Sikh community and we too demand justice for victims of the 1984 Sikh riots and the strictest punishment for anyone found guilty of such crimes,” he said.The clarification comes amid a political controversy that erupted after Sajjan Kumar’s death on Aug 20. Kumar, a former Congress MP, died at the age of 80 while serving a life sentence in connection with cases arising from the 1984 anti-Sikh violence.In Dec 2018, the Delhi high court overturned his acquittal by a trial court and sentenced him to life imprisonment in a case concerning the killing of five members of a Sikh family and the burning of a gurdwara.Kumar was subsequently convicted in another 1984 violence case concerning the killings of Jaswant Singh and his son Tarundeep Singh. A Delhi court sentenced him to life imprisonment in Feb 2025. He had also faced acquittals in some other cases, with certain appeals and proceedings continuing.Deepender’s father and former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had also paid tribute to Kumar, referring to him as a friend. Former Congress MP and Rajya Sabha member Randeep Singh Surjewala also posted a tribute, referring to Kumar’s grassroots connect, his relationship with party workers and his simple nature.These tributes triggered criticism from Sikh organisations, 1984 riot victims and opposition parties.The issue quickly became political. The BJP, Shiromani Akali Dal and Aam Aadmi Party criticised the Congress leaders’ statements and sought clarification from the party leadership. AAP leader Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal demanded action against Deepender Hooda, while Punjab Congress leaders sought to distance the party from the controversy, saying Hooda’s remarks represented his personal views.The controversy also reached the streets of Delhi. Nirpreet Kaur, who has been associated with the legal battle concerning the 1984 violence, put up a poster outside Deepender Hooda’s Delhi residence objecting to his remarks on Sajjan Kumar. Sikh leaders and families of 1984 riot victims also held a protest outside Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s residence in Delhi on Saturday, demanding an apology over remarks made by Congress leaders about Kumar.Box: More trouble for DeependerCongress MP Deepender Singh Hooda found himself in fresh trouble on Sunday after former Haryana Assembly speaker and once-close Hooda family associate Kuldeep Sharma sought his removal as a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee (CWC), accusing him of hurting Sikh sentiments and damaging the party’s prospects ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections.Sharma, in a strongly worded communication to AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, alleged that Hooda had “extolled the virtues” of former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar as a “role model”, triggering resentment among Sikhs in Haryana and Punjab. He said the remarks had “re-opened the wounds” of the community and could provide political ammunition to opposition parties.