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Operation Blue Star: When Sikhs were massacred by the Indian Army
Global Village Space |
Saleem Akhtar Malik |
Operation Blue Star was an Indian Army operation launched between 1st and 6th June 1984. The aim of this operation, ostensibly, was to remove the Sikh firebrand leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwala and his armed followers from the Harmandir Sahib complex in Amritsar, East Punjab.
Grievances of the Sikhs
Sikh religion originated in the Punjab at the end of the 15th Century. It is an egalitarian religion which evolved as a reaction to the caste-ridden Hindu society. The fundamental tenets of Sikhism include belief in one God, equality of humankind, social justice, and service to the people. Opinion is divided whether Sikhism is a reformed and restructured shape of Hinduism or a separate religion in its own right.
When the Indian Constitution was produced in 1950, it failed to deliver any safeguards or political rights for the Sikhs as a people or nation.
Throughout their history, the Sikhs have remained fiercely independent. This is evident from their struggle against the Mughal Empire and the Afghan invaders. During the struggle for freedom from the British Raj, the Sikhs were swayed by the Congress leaders. Mahatma Gandhi and Nehru gave the Sikhs assurances that after India achieves political freedom, no Constitution shall be framed by the majority community unless it is freely acceptable to the Sikhs.
Read more: Sikh anger simmers even after 33 years…
This promise was repeated throughout the period up to independence. After independence, the same Nehru who had promised, “I see nothing wrong in an area set up in the north of India wherein the Sikhs can also experience the glow of freedom”, reverted to his true colors and said, ”The circumstances have now changed”.
When the Indian Constitution was produced in 1950, it failed to deliver any safeguards or political rights for the Sikhs as a people or nation. The Sikhs, therefore, refused to sign the Constitution and have never accepted it. Article 25 of the Constitution even denies Sikhism, the fifth largest faith in the world, separate recognition as a religion, an affront that is widely seen as a deliberate act of suppression of the Sikhs.
After independence, we hear constant echoes of the Sikh resentment against ham-handedness by the majority Hindu rule. After Indira Gandhi became India’s prime minister, a new era of Byzantine politics and Machiavellian intrigues was let loose in the Indian Punjab. Nothing portrays it more clearly than the creation of the Punjabi Suba. As a result of their ten-year-long struggle (1956-66), the Sikhs finally got their own province in 1966.
In the early hours of 5th June, Indian Army moved in, thus trapping thousands of innocent men, women, and children in the Temple.
In this moth-eaten province, Chandigarh, the capital, became a Union Territory and the head-works and hydroelectric power stations were also taken over by the central government. To perpetuate her rule, Indira Gandhi resorted to a long series of divide-and-rule maneuvers throughout India. In Punjab, the politics of the Congress (I) was aimed at weakening the Akalis. With this aim in mind, she encouraged Bhindranwale and his ultra-orthodox intolerant followers. With Indira’s blessings, Bhindranwale openly attacked his opponents, the Nirankaris. Their leader, Baba Gurbachan Singh, was shot dead in Delhi on 25th April 1980. The smoking gun pointed towards Bhindranwale. Organized political murders were now appearing on the scene. Indira Gandhi, though, had taken no action against Bhindranwale after the murder of Baba Gurbachan Singh.
Read more: The Untouchables’ revolt in India: Will the Brahmins suppress the Dalits again?
The Demand for Khalistan and the attack on the Golden Temple
In March/April 1981, on the day of Baisakhi, extremists of the Dal Khalsa, the outfit headed by Bhindranwale, openly demanded Khalistan. Three months after the demand for Khalistan was made, Bhindranwale took shelter in the Golden Temple. It was the duty of the Punjab government to arrest Bhindranwale. After dictating his terms, Bhindranwale finally surrendered himself on 19th September 1981. Within days, he was released on Indira’s orders, without any bail or bond. Bhindranwale had now become a public hero. By Indira Gandhi’s blessings, he was above the law. The gory game continued.
Read full article:
Operation Blue Star: When Sikhs were massacred by the Indian Army
Global Village Space |
Saleem Akhtar Malik |
Operation Blue Star was an Indian Army operation launched between 1st and 6th June 1984. The aim of this operation, ostensibly, was to remove the Sikh firebrand leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwala and his armed followers from the Harmandir Sahib complex in Amritsar, East Punjab.
Grievances of the Sikhs
Sikh religion originated in the Punjab at the end of the 15th Century. It is an egalitarian religion which evolved as a reaction to the caste-ridden Hindu society. The fundamental tenets of Sikhism include belief in one God, equality of humankind, social justice, and service to the people. Opinion is divided whether Sikhism is a reformed and restructured shape of Hinduism or a separate religion in its own right.
When the Indian Constitution was produced in 1950, it failed to deliver any safeguards or political rights for the Sikhs as a people or nation.
Throughout their history, the Sikhs have remained fiercely independent. This is evident from their struggle against the Mughal Empire and the Afghan invaders. During the struggle for freedom from the British Raj, the Sikhs were swayed by the Congress leaders. Mahatma Gandhi and Nehru gave the Sikhs assurances that after India achieves political freedom, no Constitution shall be framed by the majority community unless it is freely acceptable to the Sikhs.
Read more: Sikh anger simmers even after 33 years…
This promise was repeated throughout the period up to independence. After independence, the same Nehru who had promised, “I see nothing wrong in an area set up in the north of India wherein the Sikhs can also experience the glow of freedom”, reverted to his true colors and said, ”The circumstances have now changed”.
When the Indian Constitution was produced in 1950, it failed to deliver any safeguards or political rights for the Sikhs as a people or nation. The Sikhs, therefore, refused to sign the Constitution and have never accepted it. Article 25 of the Constitution even denies Sikhism, the fifth largest faith in the world, separate recognition as a religion, an affront that is widely seen as a deliberate act of suppression of the Sikhs.
After independence, we hear constant echoes of the Sikh resentment against ham-handedness by the majority Hindu rule. After Indira Gandhi became India’s prime minister, a new era of Byzantine politics and Machiavellian intrigues was let loose in the Indian Punjab. Nothing portrays it more clearly than the creation of the Punjabi Suba. As a result of their ten-year-long struggle (1956-66), the Sikhs finally got their own province in 1966.
In the early hours of 5th June, Indian Army moved in, thus trapping thousands of innocent men, women, and children in the Temple.
In this moth-eaten province, Chandigarh, the capital, became a Union Territory and the head-works and hydroelectric power stations were also taken over by the central government. To perpetuate her rule, Indira Gandhi resorted to a long series of divide-and-rule maneuvers throughout India. In Punjab, the politics of the Congress (I) was aimed at weakening the Akalis. With this aim in mind, she encouraged Bhindranwale and his ultra-orthodox intolerant followers. With Indira’s blessings, Bhindranwale openly attacked his opponents, the Nirankaris. Their leader, Baba Gurbachan Singh, was shot dead in Delhi on 25th April 1980. The smoking gun pointed towards Bhindranwale. Organized political murders were now appearing on the scene. Indira Gandhi, though, had taken no action against Bhindranwale after the murder of Baba Gurbachan Singh.
Read more: The Untouchables’ revolt in India: Will the Brahmins suppress the Dalits again?
The Demand for Khalistan and the attack on the Golden Temple
In March/April 1981, on the day of Baisakhi, extremists of the Dal Khalsa, the outfit headed by Bhindranwale, openly demanded Khalistan. Three months after the demand for Khalistan was made, Bhindranwale took shelter in the Golden Temple. It was the duty of the Punjab government to arrest Bhindranwale. After dictating his terms, Bhindranwale finally surrendered himself on 19th September 1981. Within days, he was released on Indira’s orders, without any bail or bond. Bhindranwale had now become a public hero. By Indira Gandhi’s blessings, he was above the law. The gory game continued.
Read full article:
Operation Blue Star: When Sikhs were massacred by the Indian Army
