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By: Bijla Singh
Operation Blue Star was a code name
given by the Indian government to an attacked when launched on the Golden
Temple, the holiest shrine of the Sikhs. The
attack, initiated on May 31st 1984, was one of the most inflammatory
actions ever taken by the Indian government and showed the real face of regime,
which rules India. This attack proved the
values which is highest held in society: freedom, and even explicitly mentioned
in all constitutions, including the Indian constitution as Freedom of religion,
was not of importance in India.
There are many reasons
why the Indian government attacked the Golden Temple, but among them the main
reasons for the attack was simply to destroy Sikhism at its roots. In order to
understand this it is important to first look at how Sikh/Hindu relations
started. Hindus have been against Sikhism since the time of Guru Nanak Dev Ji,
most notably the Brahmins (upper caste Hindus) because Sikhism rejects the idea
of a caste system. It teaches
equality for all and declares women equal to men. Guru Nanak Dev Ji preached the
message of One God, which is totally against Hinduism. So Hindus, mostly
Brahmins (the upper class Hindus), turned against Sikhism. During the time of
Guru Gobind Singh Ji not only Brahmins but also other castes turned against
Sikhism. Guru Ji established Khalsa and everyone was given full rights and
everyone was required to sit together and eat Langar. Brahmins didn't like lower
caste people sitting equally to them and second and third class people didn't
like lower class people taking up arms for self-defense under the command of
Guru Ji. Guru Ji not only fought Moughals but also Hindu kings who were jealous
of Guru Ji's power. Hindus always betrayed Sikhs. After the British annexed the
Sikh Kingdom, a Hindu sect Arya Samaj turned against Sikhs and tried to declare
that Sikhs were actually Hindus and Sikhism was just another sect of Hinduism.
For a while this anti-Sikh propaganda slowed, but with the gaining of Indian
independence, the Hindus once again resumed and increased their negative
activities. While under British control
Gandhi and Nehru promised Sikhs that they would have full rights and freedom.
They also stated that Sikhs would have the rights to rule Punjab without any
interference from the government and that no laws would be passed without
discussing them with Sikhs. Gandhi said "You (Sikhs) take my word that if
ever the Congress or I betray you, you will be justified to draw the sword as
taught by Guru Gobind Singh." But as soon as the British left India Sikhs
were fired from their jobs and Hindus were hired. Sikhs were declared as
traitors of India.
On top of this when the
Indian constitution was written Sikhs refused to sign it in the parliament house
because Sikhs were declared “Hindus with long hair.” Gandhi told Sikhs that
if they cut their hair and give up their faith and joined the Hindus, they would
be given the full right and hired at the jobs (the very same liberties which
were denied them) but Sikhs refused to do so. The Indian government broke all of their promises and forgot all about the liberties the Sikhs had essentially won for India. When Nehru was asked about creating a separate Punjabi state, he brushed it off by saying "Circumstances have changed now." When China attacked India, it was the Sikhs who saved Nehru's life but he still thought of Sikhs as his enemies and mistreated them. Sikhs fought bravely against Pakistan in the wars of 1965 and 1971, yet the Indian government paid no attention to Sikhs' loyalty. When Pakistan army agreed to surrender, Hindu officers were sent to sign the negotiation instead of Sikhs. At this the Muslims of Pakistan refused to surrender saying that "brave people (Muslims) surrender only to brave people (Sikhs)." So Pakistan surrendered to the Sikhs, but Indian television did not show this on the television. They showed only hands. Sikhs were not shown on TV. Despite their heroism and valor Sikhs were not even dignified with credit for their labors. In
1978 the Indian government sent an agent, Gurbachan, to Punjab to disillusion
and slowly destroy Sikhism. He started by speaking against Sikhism and insulting
the Sikhs Holy Scripture Siri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. Sikhs could not tolerate
this outrageous propaganda and they launched a peaceful march to stop him. But
the agent called “Nirankari Gurbachan” had already had Indian troops with
him and had ordered them to shoot Sikhs. 13
Sikhs were killed and most others were injured. No one was punished for this
massacre and the government blamed Sikhs for the occurrence. This angered Sikhs
and they rebelled against the Indian government. Then a religious leader, Sant
Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, took power in the Sikh
Quam and started a campaign to preaching Sikhism. He preached the truth and woke
the Sikh nation. He openly spoke against the Indian government's activities
against Sikhism. He said, "Many Sikhs have been killed by Indian government
but not even a single case has been registered. But when a Hindu was killed by
police, president Indira Gandhi herself came over to his house and gave his
family a hundred thousand rupees and the police officer was punished. Is this
not discrimination? Three Sikhs hijacked a passenger plane for the cause of
religion and not even a single passenger was harmed, The Indian government
declared them as terrorists and they were killed at the airport. But when Hindus
hijacked a plane to free a jailed Indira Gandhi, they were given positions in
the government and the government declared them as heroes after meeting their
demands and letting a guilty Indira go free. Is this not discrimination?"
These messages influenced
people very much. After hearing the truth, people started supporting Sant
Jarnail Singh Ji Bhindranwale and a freedom movement rose. Many people became
Sikhs. Sometimes, as many as 10,000 people would initiated into Sikhism at one
ceremony. (At that time there was no mention of Khalistan.) Sant Jarnail Singh
Ji and many political leaders launched a peaceful march. They wanted the Indian
government to grant them full rights and treat them as first class citizens. An
Anandpur Sahib resolution was brought to attention by Sant Jarnail Singh Ji,
which included many demands for Punjab and Sikhs such as: 1. Regional autonomy for Punjab. (The Indian Government was interfering) The Indian government paid no attention to Sikh
concerns and began arresting Sikhs blindly. About 150,000 Sikhs were arrested
and many were killed- still not a single demand was met. Sant Jernail Singh
said, "There is no solution to Sikhs' problems without freedom." Riots
between Hindus and Sikhs broke out. When Sikhs were killed, police took no
action but when Hindus were killed, not only victims were punished but also
innocent Sikhs were killed. In other states of India many Sikhs were killed. All
Sikhs traveling in trains and buses were stopped and killed. In Haryana, Hindus
were called from villages by beating drums to kill Sikhs. Every train was
stopped and Sikhs were dragged out and killed. At this point Sant Jarnail
Singh was assured that the Indian government was making plans to attack the
Golden Temple at Amritsar. He addressed the Sikhs and advised them to be ready
to defend the Golden Temple. He said, "The day Indian government attacks
the Golden Temple, foundation of Khalistan will be laid."
On May 31st the Indian government launched an attack on the
Golden Temple with 500,000 troops. There were only 251 Sikhs inside to protect
the complex of the Golden Temple. But it was not a big attack at first because
Sikhs were coming to Golden Temple to celebrate Martyr day of Guru Arjan Dev Ji.
Sikhs held the army back for four days. Many troops lost their lives but not a
single person of army could enter the Temple. Then the Indian government brought
tanks and destroyed the Akaal Takhat Sahib, which is right in front of the
Golden Temple. On June 6th, when all Sikh fighters became martyrs, the war was
over and the Indian troops entered the temple.
They did not even respect the holiness of the sacred place and entered
with their shoes on, showing utter indecency. When Indian
troops found that only 251 men had stopped them from entering the temple for 6
days they started killing innocent Sikhs who had come there to visit the Temple.
This was to hide their humiliation. The small number of heroic Sikhs killed even
the best of their army men. Sikhs in the temple were lined up and shot---dead,
not even children were spared. About 50,000 Sikhs were killed that day.
Priceless Sikh artifacts were burnt. All the Literature written by the Gurus was
taken away by the army, but they claimed that it was burnt while bombing the
Temple. The whole Amritsar city was burnt. Many visitors were killed and
arrested. Sikhs' shops were looted and houses were burnt. Hindu mobs went to
every Sikh house and burnt Sikhs alive, women were dishonored even pregnant Sikh
women. Most Sikhs that were killed were between ages from 5 to 40. Their main
target was young Sikh males. The
Indian government feared that young Sikhs would rebel. They thought if they
killed young Sikh men then there would be no Sikh marriages and in next 10 or 15
years the Sikh population would not increase and they would eventually die out.
Indian government started making excuses about why it had become
necessary to attack Golden Temple. Indian government claimed that Sant Jarnail
Singh and his companions were using the building as their hiding place and had
kept deadly weapons inside the building. Furthermore, they said they wanted to
arrest Bhindranwale and drive him out of Golden Temple. But my point is if they
wanted to arrest Bhindranwale then why couldn't they arrest him when he preached
all over India. He went to Bombay, Delhi and other major cities. So why couldn't
the Indian government arrest him there? Why couldn't they arrest him at Mehta
Choank? If the Golden Temple was attacked to drive out Sant Bhindranwale then
why were other more than 50 Sikh temples attacked on the same day in Punjab by the army?
Why were thousands of innocent people killed? Why did the government have to use
tanks and heavy artillery to drive out few Sikhs? The truth is, it was a big plan of
the Hindu government to destroy Sikhism and merge it into Hinduism. If you just
look at what happened to Sikhs before 1984, it makes clear sense of why the
Indian government attacked Golden Temple. Just look at the Olympic games of 1983
where no person with the last name "Singh" was allowed to enter in
Delhi. If Bhindranwale was the target then why didn't the army leave Punjab
right after it was over? Why was the literature burned? Why did Indian troops
linger and disrespectfully smoke cigars inside the temple?
All of the visitors to
the Golden Temple were arrested and they all starved to death because they were
not given any food to eat not even a single drop of water. When someone asked
for water, the army men said "Drink that blood on the floor. That's what
you deserve. You deserve to die." Many visitors were locked up in the rooms
for two days without any food, water, or electricity and they all starved to
death. The Golden Temple remained under the army control for months. WHY?!!! Because Indian government wanted to put someone in charge who
would support them. Using Sant Jarnail Singh's name was just a mere excuse. The
truth is he was a real leader who openly spoke for the rights of Sikhs. In 1982,
he had already said that Indian government was making plans to attack Golden
Temple. Indian government built a model of Golden Temple in Dehradoon and the
army was given special training.
When Sikhs in other states found out about the attack, they rebelled.
Most of them who were in the Indian army and were far away from Punjab. They
quickly left for Punjab and thwarted and killed many Hindus in power and
officers. This put a stop to Indian army's mission of killing innocent Sikhs in
Punjab. Indian government turned its attention to Sikh military and tried to
stop them before they could reach Punjab. Many Sikhs were killed on the way and
many were arrested. There are about 60,000 Sikhs in
jails without any charge or trial. Five months later Indira Gandhi was
assassinated by her two Sikh bodyguards. One of them became martyr at the spot
and other was hanged later after severe tortures. About 5,000 Sikhs were killed
in four days. The mobs were organized by the government officials. Every Hindu
was given 500 rupees and one liquor bottle to kill Sikhs. Mobs were given
addresses of Sikhs' houses and shops so that their property could be destroyed.
No Hindu house was attacked, only Sikhs' houses were burned and Sikhs were
killed and burned alive. Most young Sikh males were killed and many young Sikh
females were dishonored.
After Operation Blue Star and the Sikh massacre in Delhi, Sikh rebellions
took over Golden Temple in order to restore the respect and honor it was
entitled to, but the Indian government didn't like this. They wanted the Golden
Temple under their control. So another attack was launched on the Golden Temple
in 1987, called "Operation Black Thunder". This time only Sikh
rebellions were the main target. Thousands were killed and dead bodies lay
inside the Holy place for many days. My father was a Ragi in the Golden Temple
during that time. He tells of the brutality of the Indian government who refused
to remove the bodies saying that, those dead bodies were Sikhs' and it was
Sikhs' responsibility to remove them. According to my father, all employees of
SGPC volunteered to remove the bodies. My father said the bodies lay there for
days in the hot sun because it was summer time. The bodies were so rotten that
when my father tried to pull one body by its arm, the skin came off in his hand.
People could not even enter the Temple because of the smell. Many trucks were
loaded with dead bodies and all were burned with kerosene oil. |
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