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Operation Blue Star

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Operation Blue Star

The Golden Temple with Akal Takht in the background
DateJune 3, 1984 - June 6, 1984
Location
Golden Temple in Amritsar, India
Result Sikh militia are driven out of Golden temple complex
Belligerents
Indian Army Sikh militiamen
Casualties and losses
Military: 83 killed, 248 wounded Militants (including civilians): 492 Killed

Operation Blue Star ( ਬਿਲਯੂ ਸਟਾਰ , बिल्यू स्टार (bilyū sţār)) (June 3 to June 6, 1984) was an Indian military operation ordered by Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India,[1] to remove Sikh separatists who were amassing weapons in the Golden Temple in Amritsar.[2] The operation was launched in response to a deterioration of law and order in the Punjab. The government's reasons for a seemingly late action, its choice of day to attack and heavy army assault is still highly debated. The operation was carried out by Indian army troops with tanks and armored vehicles.[3] Militarily successful, it is considered to be a political disaster and an un-precedented act in modern Indian history.[4]

Official reports put the number of deaths among the Indian army at 83 and the number of civilian deaths at 492, though independent estimates ran much higher.

The impact of the military assault, its aftermath and the increased tensions led to assaults on members of the Sikh community within India and uproar amongst Sikhs worldwide. In India, many Sikhs resigned from armed and civil administrative office and returned their government awards.[5] Revenge for the desecration of the Sikh shrine was pledged by some in the Sikh community,[5] resulting in the assassination of Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards on 31 October 1984.

The operation

The Indian Army used seven Vijayanta Tanks during the operation[6]

Indira Gandhi first asked Lt. Gen. S.K. Sinha, then Vice-Chief of Indian Army and who was to succeed as the Army chief, to prepare a position paper for assault on the Golden Temple.[7] Lt. Gen. Sinha advised against any such move, given the sacrilegious outlook from pious Sikhs. He suggested the government adopt an alternative solution. A controversial decision was made to replace him with Gen. Arun Vaidya as the Chief of the Indian army. Gen. Vaidya was assisted by Lt. Gen. K. Sunderjee as Vice-Chief. Operation Blue Star was eventually planned and controlled by them.[7]

On June 3, a 36 hour curfew was imposed on the state of Punjab with all methods of communication and public travel suspended.[8] Electricity supplies were also interrupted, creating a total blackout and cutting off the state from the rest of India and the world.[9] Complete censorship was placed on all types of Media.[9]

The Indian Army stormed the Golden Temple on the night of June 5 under the command of Major General Kuldip Singh Brar. The forces had full control of the Golden Temple by the morning of June 7. Bhindranwale, Shahbeg Singh and several other militant leaders were killed in the operation along with a large number of followers and innocent civilians. The armed forces also suffered many casualties.[10]

Operation Blue Star coincided with a Sikh annual festival. Pilgrims, including the elderly and children, were trapped inside the temple when the operation began and many were reported as wounded and killed as a result.[10]

Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale in the Golden Temple

Throughout his career Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale remained in contact with Indira Gandhi,[11] who maintained the contact despite allegations.[12] Bhindranwale had earlier taken refuge in the Golden temple in April 1980, when he was named as a suspect in the killing of Nirankari Baba Gurbachan Singh[13] to which Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale had offered voluntary arrest to Punjab Police but was never arrested due to greater design by Indian Government. The Nirankari Baba, also known as Baba Gurbachan Singh, had been the target of an attack by followers of a Sikh group, Akhand Kirtani Jatha, outside the Golden Temple when he appeared claiming himself to be incarnation of Guru Gobind Singh. The Nirankaris are a heretical sect, who claim to be a part of the Sikh panth, but are not considered such by the Khalsa. On 13 April 1978 Nirankar's Head Gurbachan Singh openly ridiculed and insulted the 10th Guru , Sri Guru Gobind Singh in Nirankari Convention held in Amritsar,to which members of the Akhand Kirtani Jatha after hearing Nirankari Gurbachan Singh ,held a peaceful protest march. On reaching the convention bodyguards of Niranakari Head Gurbachan Singh opened fire at the peaceful protestors, seeing this Fauja Singh drew his sword and tried to stop the firing; he was shot by a bodyguard.[14][15] The bodyguards of the Baba used semi-automatic machine guns to fire at the protesters who were carrying swords and sticks. In the ensuing violence, several people were killed: two of Bhindranwale's followers, eleven Sikhs of the Akhand Kirtani Jatha, and three Nirankaris.[15] That event was, allegedly[who?], premeditated by the Indian government[14][16] with the Nirankaris subsequently acquitted of any wrong-doing by the courts, on grounds of self-defence.

In 1982, Bhindranwale and approximately 200 followers moved into a guest-house called the Guru Nanak Niwas, in the precinct of the Golden Temple.[17] From here he met and was interviewed by international television crews whilst violence in the Punjab against Hindus continued.[17]

On 23 April 1983, the Punjab Police Deputy Inspector General (DIG) A. S. Atwal was shot dead as he left the Golden Temple compound. The following day, after the murder, Harchand Singh Longowal (then president of Shiromani Akali Dal) hinted at the involvement of the Chief minister of the Punjab, Darbara Singh, in the murder.[18]

On October 5, 1983 and November 18, 1983, militants posing as Sikhs hijacked two buses, Sikh and Hindu passengers were separated and the Hindus shot dead.[19] The selective murders were condemned by Bhindranwale.[20]

File:Sant-Jarnail-Singh-Bhindranwale in the golden temple.jpg
Bhindranwale with his entourage at the Golden Temple.

When Darbara Singh resigned as chief minister of Punjab after the massacre of Hindu travellers on October 6, 1983, Bhindarwale said " Six Hindus are killed and the (State) government has fallen. Two Hundred Sikhs have been gunned down by police and nothing has been done. This shows that to the (Central) government Hindu lives are more important than Sikh lives".[21][22]

On December 15, 1983, Bhindranwale was forced to move out of Guru Nanak Niwa's house by members of the Babbar Khalsa who acted with Harcharan Singh Longowal's support Longowal by now feared for his own safety. By 1983, the Golden Temple became a shelter for a large number of militants. Mark Tully and Satish Jacob wrote:[23]

"All ... terrorists were known by name to the shopkeepers and the householders who live in the narrow alleys surrounding the Golden Temple...The Punjab police must have known who they were also, but they made no attempt to arrest them. By this time Bhindranwale and his men were above the law."

The Golden Temple compound and some of the surrounding houses were fortified. The Statesman reported on July 4 that light machine-guns and semi-automatic rifles were known to have been brought into the compound. On February 1, 1984, Harcharan Singh Longowal claimed that Bhindranwale had suggested to him that motorcycles and arms should be purchased on a mass scale for killing members of a 'particular community'".[24] Bhindranwale angrily responded to the allegation, saying "...nothing is more farther in my mind than this ".[21]

Faced with imminent army action and with the foremost Sikh political organisation, Shiromani Akali Dal (headed by Harchand Singh Longowal), abandoning him, Bhindranwale declared "This bird is alone. There are many hunters after it ".[21]

Time magazine reported (about Amritsar) that:[25]

"These days it more closely resembles a city of death. Inside the temple compound, fierce Sikh warriors wield submachine guns, guarding against encroachment by government security forces. Outside, the security men keep a nervous vigil, all too aware that the bodies of murdered comrades often turn up in the warren of tiny streets around the shrine."

Overview

Operation Blue Star was launched to eliminate the Sikh militants who had taken control of the Amritsar Golden Temple Complex. The Sikh militants within the Harminder Sahib were led by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and former Major-General Shabeg Singh MVC,who had been expelled from the Indian Army for embezzlement. Maj. Gen. Kuldip Singh Brar had command of the action, operating under Gen. Sunderji.

20 hrs - 22 hrs

File:Armyinbluestar.JPG
Indian Army taking position outside the temple complex

The first element was the destruction of Shabeg Singh's outer defenses. Much of this had been completed in the preliminary shelling. Major-General Brar had hoped to force Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale into surrendering, which did not occur. The destroyed defenses included seventeen houses which the police believed Bhindranwale's followers occupied in the alleys surrounding the Golden Temple. Nearby was the Brahmbuta Akhara, a large building housing the headquarters of a Sikh sect. Then there were three main towers which had been fortified to create positions from which Bhindranwale's men could defend. Because the towers rose well above surrounding buildings, they were excellent observation positions for tracking the movement of Indian troops in the narrow alleys surrounding the temple. The tops of these towers were destroyed in the preliminary artillery fire.

22 hrs - 2330 hrs

Between 10:00 PM and 10:30 PM on June 5 commandos from 1st Battalion, the parachute regiment, were ordered to run down the steps under the clock tower on to the parikarma, or pavement, and move quickly around the edge of the sacred pool to the Akal Takht. As the paratroopers entered the main gateway to the Temple they were gunned down by light machine-gun firefrom both sides of the steps. The few commandos who did get down the steps were driven back by a barrage of fire from the building on the south side of the sacred pool. In the control room, a house on the opposite side of the clock-tower, Major-General Brar was waiting with two supporting officers to hear confirmation that the commandos had established positions inside the complex.[26]

File:TANK IN PARKARMA.JPG
An APC used in the operation.

The few commandos left regrouped in the square outside and reported back to Major-General Brar. He ordered them to make another attempt. The commandos were then to be followed by the 10th Battalion of the Guards, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Israr Khan. This second commando attack managed to neutralize the machine-gun posts on both sides of the steps and get down on to the parikarma. They were followed by the Guards who came under heavy fire and were not able to make any progress. They radioed for permission to fire back at the buildings on the other side of the tank. That would have meant that the Golden Temple itself, which is in the middle of the pool, would have been in the line of fire. Brar initially refused, but started to receive reports of heavy casualties from the commander of the Guards.

2330 hrs - 01 hrs

Brar again requested tanks after an APC was destroyed by a rocket fired by a Sikh militant. His request was granted and seven tanks rolled into the Golden Temple complex. They cleared the ramparts and later assaulted the main temple in order to neutralize the militants remaining in the structure. The shelling achieved its objective and the primary target of removing militants from the Akal Takht was achieved by 01:00. However, the secondary objective of removing militants from other neighbouring structures went on for a further 24 hours.

Casualties

As per the affidavit filed by retired Brigadier D.V. Rao in court of Harjit Singh Khalsa, judicial magistrate first class, Amritsar, on March 19, 2007, the Indian Army suffered 83 deaths, which included four officers, four Junior Commissioned Officers and 75 other ranks. As per the affidavit, 13 Indian Army officers, 16 JCOs and 220 other ranks were injured in the operation. Indian army recorded 492 civilian deaths inside Golden Temple with 433 persons segregated as "separatists" amongst 1592 persons apprehended.[27][28] During June of 1984, brigadier D.V. Rao served as Commander of 350 Infantry Brigade based in Jalandhar, which formed part of Ninth Infantry Division of Indian Army. The unofficial casualty figures from eye-witness accounts (such as Amnesty International) was much higher.[29]

The Army placed total casualties at:

  • Military : 83 killed, 248 wounded
  • Sikh Casulties : 492 Killed (100 women and 75 children), 86 wounded (7 women and 4 children).[30]

Independent historians placed the figure at:

Aftermath

Main articles: Indira Gandhi assassination and 1984 Anti-Sikh riots
File:Blue star akal takht.jpg
Bullet and shell riddled Akal Takht building after Operation Blue Star

An unspecified number of Sikh soldiers resigned from positions across India in protest, with some reports of large-scale pitched battles being fought to bring mutineers under control.[33] The operation also led to the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. On October 31 of that year, two of her armed Sikh security officers murdered her.[34] Anti-Sikh riots were triggered by Mrs Gandhi's assassination. The widespread killing of Sikhs, principally in the national capital Delhi but also in other major cities in North India, led to major divisions between the Sikh community and the Indian Government.

General A S Vaidya, the Chief of Army Staff at the time of Operation Blue Star, was also assassinated in 1986 in Pune by two Sikhs, Harjinder Singh Jinda and Sukhdev Singh Sukha. Both were sentenced to death, and hanged on 7 October 1992.

The army was removed from the Golden Temple later in 1984 under pressure from Sikh demands.[35] Sikh militants continued to use and occupy the temple compound and on May 1, 1986, Indian paramilitary police entered the temple and arrested 200 militants that had occupied the Golden Temple for more than three months.[36]

On May 2, 1986 the paramilitary police undertook an 12-hour operation to take control of the Golden Temple at Amritsar from several hundred militants, but almost all the major radical leaders managed to escape.[37]

In May 1988, army troops were called in again to remove militants from the temple. The conflict during May 12-18 resulting in clearing the compound and on May 23, regular worship resumed. On May 29, the government banned both political and military use of the shrines in India. Sikh militants then murdered the head priest on July 26, 1988. In June 1990, the Indian government ordered the area surrounding the temple to be vacated by local residents to try to stop the militant activity around the temple.[38]

Choice of time to attack by Government

The timing of Operation Blue Star has baffled Sikhs. It was a religious day, regarding the martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev (the founder of Golden Temple), and Sikhs from all over the world visit the temple on this day. In 1736 the Golden Temple was attacked by the Mughal army, resulting in heavy casualties of civilian Sikhs.[39] Attack of Ahmad Shah Abdali on Golden Temple (Darbar Sahib) also came on Vaisakhi day when Sikhs gather in large numbers in Amritsar. Many Sikhs view the timing and attack by the Indian Army as an attempt to inflict maximum casualties on Sikhs and demoralize them.[40]

The Sikh community's anger and suffering was further increased by comments from leading newspaper editors, such as Ramnath Goenka, terming the operation as " A greater victory than the win over Bangladesh, this is the greatest victory of Mrs. Gandhi".[41]

Criticism of the operation

The use of artillery in the congested inner city of Amritsar proved deadly and reckless considering many civilians lived near the Golden Temple. The media blackout throughout the Punjab resulted in widespread doubt regarding the official stories and aided the promotion of hearsay and rumour.[42]

The army responded to such criticisms by pointing out that the militants in the temple were armed with machine guns, anti tank missiles and rocket launchers and that they strongly resisted the army's attempts to dislodge them from the shrine, and appeared to have planned for a long stand-off, having arranged for water to be supplied from wells within the temple compound and had stocked food provisions that could have lasted months. However, in a recent book written by M.K. Dhar, former Indian Intelligence Bureau chief writes that many weapons were implanted by the Indian Intelligence itself before the operation.

The Army Chief and other senior Generals made statements that no harm was done to the Golden Temple and Akal Takht. The TV news reported about findings of a Rocket Launcher and two medium machine guns. But these did not find any mention in the official white paper issued by the Govt. The white paper mentions of General Shabeg Singh of having a walkie talkie in his hand, but mentions of no-one else having that to receive or pass on the orders. Shahbeg Singh was mentioned as having sacked from the army but no mention was made that he was acquitted by the appropriate court of all the charges against him. One editor told Richard Nations that the national press was giving good play to the Govt. line "out of sympathy for the Indian Army, the last Holy Cow we have." [43]

In the words of BBC journalists Mark Tully and Satish Jacob, the White Paper in its anxiety to highlight the threat which had forced the govt. to take such a drastic action came near to describing the Akali Dal as separatists too, which once again outraged the moderate majority of the Sikh community.[44] When the White Paper was written off by the Press and the Sikhs as an in-adequate justification of the operation, an all-out effort was made by the govt. to blame Pakistan and the Foreign Hands. In all their speeches, both Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi highlighted the foreign hand in Punjab, but the effect was marred by their reluctance to identify that hand. Sometimes it was the CIA, sometimes Pakistan and sometimes even Britain.[45] A pamphlet, 'Conspiracy Exposed', distributed by the Congress Party talked about highly sophisticated weapons found inside the Golden Temple complex which were produced in China. These allegations did not convince the Press. Sikhs also wrote of the foreign hand. They knew that Indira Gandhi had a habit of blaming India's problems on foreigners.[46]

Mark Tully and Satish Jacob also wrote that matters were made worse by the poor performance of the government-controlled media, especially the television service, Doordarshan.[47] Under the guidance of a special committee, dominated by a close friend of Rajiv Gandhi, Doordarshan mounted a series of programmes to justify the army action in the Golden Temple. Major General K.S Brar was seen standing outside the Harmandir Sahib describing the operation like a victorious conqueror.[48] Other programmes concentrated proving the guilt of the Sikhs. Pictures of naval divers recovering arms were shown and the allegations that drugs had been used were also made. They had to be withdrawn because they could not be substantiated. A visibly un-happy, Head Priest of Akal Takht, was forced to read out a statement saying that the Golden Temple was undamaged, when he knew that there were bullet holes in the Sikh's most sacred shrine.[49]

Allegations of Cruelty on the Indian Army

The Sikh Reference Library was set on fire during the Operation and Army confiscated lot of Sikh relics. The Indian Government accepted that the army was involved in the confiscation of Sikh relics including handwritten manuscripts.[50]

There were thousands of pilgrims inside the Darbar Sahib on day of Martyrdom and conservative estimates have put the number to 5000-9000. Several human rights groups such as Citizens For Democracy and other journalists have witnessed Sikh dead bodies being thrown in dump trucks and illegally cremated by the Indian Army.

C.K.C Reddy, an Indian journalist writes that the whole of Punjab and especially the Golden Temple Complex was turned into a murderous mouse trap from where people could neither escape nor could they seek succor of any kind.The way the dead bodies were disposed off adds to the suspicions regarding the number and nature of the casualties.The bodies of the victims of military operation in Punjab were unceremoniously destroyed without any attempt to identify them and hand them over to their relatives. The government, after the operation, on the other hand, did every thing in its power to cover up the excesses of the army action.The most disturbing thing about the entire operation was that a whole mass of men, women, and children were ordered to be killed merely on the suspicion that some terrorists were operating from the Golden Temple and other Gurdwaras. [51]

Justice V.M. Tarkunde labeled the Army operation as an undeclared, unilateral ruthless war against hundred of innocent defenseless men and women in far-away tiny villages of Punjab from where their voices do not reach the rest of India. In the name of curbing terrorism,he writes that unabashed state terrorism was unleashed on the Sikhs branding them as criminals, arbitrary arrests and McCarthy style witch-hunt, sadistic torture...shooting down of young men in false encounters were common occurrences; even village women were not spared, they were harassed and beaten up, dishonored and taken away to Police Stations or to unknown destinations.The eye witnesses witnessed the use of gas by the Army, the pile of dead bodies on the `Parikarma,' the arrival of tanks which some of them thought were the ambulances, the hovering of helicopter at night, throwing their search light on targets which were bombed, the wanton destruction of the Akal Takht (the Eternal Throne), the Research Library and the Museum. Tarkunde asserts , it is the State itself which openly indulges not only in murder and assault but also in inhuman torture, molestation of women...and false encounters leading to gruesome death. In his words on the condition of Sikhs- "Our visit was almost like lifting the corner of a veil to discover a face - an amazing face full of conflicting emotions, suffering yet defiant, anguished yet challenging, tortured yet proud"[52]

The Christian Science Monitor reported that the pattern in each Punjab village appeared to be the same. The Army moves in during the early evening, cordons a village, and announces over loudspeakers that everyone must come out. All males between the ages of 15 and 35 were trussed and blindfolded, then taken away. Thousands have disappeared in the Punjab since the Army Operation began. The government has provided no lists of names; families don't know if sons and husbands are arrested, underground or dead." [53]

Ram Narayan Kumar, a noted human rights lawyer in his book "Reduced to Ashes" asserts that Sikhs in Punjab are demonized as a community, targeted for abuse by the authorities and they had no protection from the leaders of the supposedly independent institutions, including the judiciary, either in shielding their fundamental rights against imminent violations or in obtaining acknowledgment and legal restitution of wrongs. In his words "Freedom of discourse remained an empty promise which even the higher judiciary joined the chorus to turn the page and obliterate the victims' memory on the grounds that a public discussion and scrutiny focusing on past abuses and the role of institutions would undermine the interests of peace and social order." [54]

Joyce Pettigrew, a Swedish anthropologist in her book title "The Sikhs of Punjab" wrote that the Indian Army went into Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple Complex) "not to eliminate a political figure or a political movement but to suppress the culture of a people, to attack their heart, to strike a blow at their spirit and self-confidence."

The army simply stated that they "answered the call of duty as disciplined, loyal and dedicated members of the Armed Forces of India....our loyalties are to the nation, the armed forces to which we belong, the uniforms we wear and to the troops we command"[55]

According to some journalists, several Sikh youths were also killed by Indian Army by tying their hand at back after completion of Operation at point blank range.[56]

The wearing out approach taken by Rajiv Gandhi five years later, in Operation Black Thunder when Sikh militants had again taken over the temple complex, was highly successful as they managed to resolve the stand-off peacefully. The army responded by stating that "no comparison is possible between the two situations, as "there was no cult figure like Bhindranwale to idolise, and professional military General like Shahbeg Singh to provide for military leadership"[57] and "confidence of militants having been shattered by Operation Blue Star".[57]


References

  1. ^ Operation BlueStar, 20 Years On
  2. ^ Operation Bluestar, 5 June 1984
  3. ^ Ahmad, Ishtiaq (1996). State, Nation, and Ethnicity in Contemporary South Asia. Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 130. ISBN 1855675781. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  4. ^ Praagh, David Van (2003). The Greater game: India's Race With Destiny and China. India: McGill Queen's Press- MQUP. ISBN 0773516395. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  5. ^ a b Westerlund, David (1996). Questioning The Secular State: The Worldwide Resurgence of Religion in Politics. C. Hurst & Co. p. 1276. ISBN 1850652414. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  6. ^ Singh, Sangat (1992). The Sikhs In History. Uncommon Books. p. 378. ISBN 8190065009. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  7. ^ a b Sharma, Cf. Brig. Man Mohan (1998). What Ails The Indian Army. Trishul Publications. pp. 273–75. ISBN 8185384258. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  8. ^ Brar, K.S. (1992). Operation Blue Star: True Story. UBS Publishers Distributors (P), Limited. p. 54. ISBN 8174760687. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  9. ^ a b Brar, K.S. (1992). Operation Blue Star: True Story. UBS Publishers Distributors (P), Limited. pp. 81–82. ISBN 8174760687. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  10. ^ a b Ahmed, Ishtiaq (1996). State, Nation, and Ethnicity in Contemporary South Asia. Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 130. ISBN 1855675781. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  11. ^ "The confusion in the Governors house in Chandigarh was made worse by Mrs. Gandhis maintaining contact with Bhindranwale. Her go-between was the President of Punjab Congress, Raghunandan Lal Bhatia...This link, which was well known to officials, enhanced Bhindranwales status and made the Indian administration even more reluctant to grapple with him." Tully, Mark (1985). Amritsar; Mrs. Gandhi's last Battle. New Delhi: Rupa & Co. p. 121. ISBN 81-291-0917-4. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ Blank, Jonah (2000). Arrow of The Blue Skinned God: retracing the Ramayana through India. p. 354. ISBN 0802137334. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  13. ^ India in 1984: Confrontation, Assassination, and Succession, by Robert L. Hardgrave, Jr. Asian Survey, 1985 University of California Press
  14. ^ a b Mark Tully, Satish Jacob (1985). Amritsar; Mrs. Gandhi's Last Battle. London. pp. 58–59. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  15. ^ a b Punjab: The Knights of Falsehood. Psalms of Terror.
  16. ^ Singh, Tavleen (1984). The Punjab Story. pp. Amarjit Kaur, et.at., 32. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  17. ^ a b Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale
  18. ^ Longowal said "Whenever the situation becomes ripe for settlement, some violent incident takes place. I think the (Indian) government is behind the murder of the DIG", "(The person behind the murder is) The one who is afraid of losing his seat of power (Darbara Singh)"Indian Express. April 27, 1983. pp. interview with Longowal. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  19. ^ "...such acts of butchery are not sponsored by the Sikh community as a community, nor even the Akali Dal, or by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.....".The Tribune. November 20, 1983. Chandigarh. pp. Editorial. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  20. ^ ...[Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale] has condemned the murders as has Harchand Singh Longowal. The Tribune. November 20, 1983. Chandigarh. pp. Editorial. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  21. ^ a b c SANT JARNAIL SINGH BHINDRANWALE - LIFE, MISSION, AND MARTYRDOM by Ranbir S. Sandhu, May 1997
  22. ^ Singh, Tavleen (1984). The Punjab Story. pp. Amarjit Kaur, 41. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  23. ^ Mark Tully and Satish Jacob, Amritsar -Mrs. Gandhi's Last Battle (Calcutta: Rupa & Co. by arrangement with Pan Books, London, 1985)
  24. ^ Kuldip Nayar and Khushwant Singh, Tragedy of Punjab, Vision Books, New Delhi, 1984, page 79.
  25. ^ City of Death, Time, November 7, 1983.
  26. ^ Indian Army Viewpoint
  27. ^ Army reveals startling facts on Bluestar
  28. ^ 492 civilians died in Bluestar: Brig Rao
  29. ^ Video of interview with an Indian Army Officer who explains details of how the Sikhs fought, and the number of casualties.
  30. ^ Brar, K.S. (1992). Operation Blue Star: True Story. UBS Publishers Distributors (P), Limited. p. 124. ISBN 8174760687. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  31. ^ a b Joshi, Chand (1984). Bhindranwale: Myth and Reality. Vikas. p. 161. ISBN 0706926943. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  32. ^ Singh, Patwant (2000). The Sikhs. Knopf. p. 233. ISBN 0375407286. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  33. ^ General promises to punish Sikh mutineers
  34. ^ 1984: Indian prime minister shot dead
  35. ^ SIKHS, IN RALLY, PRESS THE ARMY TO QUIT TEMPLE, SANJOY HAZARIKA, THE NEW YORK TIMES, September 3, 1984, Monday
  36. ^ INDIAN POLICEMEN RAID SIKH TEMPLE, STEVEN R. WEISMAN, NEW YORK TIMES, May 1, 1986
  37. ^ NY Times, May 2, 1986
  38. ^ India Uproots Thousands Living Near Sikh Temple, BARBARA CROSSETTE, THE NEW YORK TIMES, June 3, 1990
  39. ^ Gyani, Gian SIngh (1923). Twarikh-i-Guru Khalsa. Patiala. p. 18.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  40. ^ Dhillon, Gurdashan Singh. Truth About Punjab (SGPC White Paper). Amristar: Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee.
  41. ^ Singh, Patwant (June {{subst:CURRENTYEAR}}), "Alienation Is The Key", Sikh Review, http://www.sikhreview.org/june1994/comment.htm {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  42. ^ Anniversary Issue, India Today, December 26, 2005,p 136.
  43. ^ Far Eastern Economic Review, July 12, 1984; in 'The Sikhs in History' pp.386 ISBN 0964755505
  44. ^ Tully, Mark, Satish Jacob, Amritsar: Mrs. Gandhi's Last Battle, pp.209-10. ISBN 81-291-0917-4
  45. ^ Tully, Mark, Satish Jacob, Amritsar: Mrs. Gandhi's Last Battle, pp.209-10. ISBN 81-291-0917-4
  46. ^ Tully, Mark, Satish Jacob, Amritsar: Mrs. Gandhi's Last Battle, pp.209-10. ISBN 81-291-0917-4
  47. ^ Tully, Mark, Satish Jacob, Amritsar: Mrs. Gandhi's Last Battle, pp.207. ISBN 81-291-0917-4
  48. ^ Tully, Mark, Satish Jacob, Amritsar: Mrs. Gandhi's Last Battle, pp.207. ISBN 81-291-0917-4
  49. ^ Tully, Mark, Satish Jacob, Amritsar: Mrs. Gandhi's Last Battle, pp.207. ISBN 81-291-0917-4
  50. ^ http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030607/windows/note.htm
  51. ^ CKC Reddy, et al, Army Action in Punjab: Prelude & Aftermath, New Delhi: Samata Era Publication, 1984, pp. 46-48
  52. ^ Judge V M Tarkunde, et al, Oppression in Punjab: Report to the Nation, New Delhi: Citizens for Democracy, 1985, pp. 8-10, 18-19
  53. ^ Mary Anne Weaver, The Christian Science Monitor, October 15, 1984)
  54. ^ Ram Narayan Kumar, et al, Reduced to Ashes (Volume One), Asia Forum for Human Rights, Kathmandu, Nepal, May 2003, pp. 75)
  55. ^ Brar, K.S. (1992). Operation Blue Star: True Story. UBS Publishers Distributors (P), Limited. p. 156. ISBN 8174760687. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  56. ^ Tully, Mark (1985). Amritsar: Mrs. Gandhi's Last Battle. J. Cape. p. 169. ISBN 0224023284. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  57. ^ a b Brar, K.S. (1992). Operation Blue Star: True Story. UBS Publishers Distributors (P), Limited. pp. 153–154. ISBN 8174760687. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

External sources

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