Operation Blue Star 1984: Long-term effects

[Dalvinder Singh Grewal]

Operation Blue Star 1984: Long-term effects
Dr Dalvinder Singh Grewal
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• Sikhs' most venerated sanctum, Santorum Sri Darbar Sahib and Sri Akal Takhat, were attacked by the government using tanks, guns, and other weapons for mass destruction.
• The most value literature house of the Sikhs The reference library too was damaged.
• It was the war of the unequal. The weaponry used was also not minimum, but it can be called maximum. An army of 3 corps was used to control and eliminate a few committed Sikhs in the Akal Takhat Sahib complex and 37/42 other Gurdwaras. The figure can be related as under. The operation lasts 10 days, as that of Bangladesh. The troops were also nearly the same as in Bangladesh. The troops, however, in Bangladesh were against a corps of regular army, while here there were around 400 untrained irregulars who fought gallantly for five days, i.e., from 3 to 7 June 1984.
• The Army Commander and the other general said, “We went with all the humility," but in actuality there was beastliness that prevailed when dealing with pilgrims. The sanctum sanctorum was polluted by cigarettes and the use of shoes.
• Gen Brar said in his book, 'We strictly instructed our troops not to fire at Darbar Sahib, and they obeyed our orders to the last. It turned out to be a totally false claim since this researcher found over 300 bullet marks on the dome and the main building of Darbar Sahib; Sri Guru Granth Sahib was pierced with a bullet, and the Granthi shot inside Darbar Sahib succumbed.
• The Sikh psyche was deeply hurt. They felt like aliens in their own land.
• There was a revolt among Sikh troops, especially in the training center at Ranchi and a number of other regiments. Some of them were killed, some cashiered, and others gave other punishments through court martials.
• Media played a partisan role. Since India’s main media is Hindu-oriented, it did its best to malign Sikhs outrightly, increasing the pain.
• The Government of India, under a despotic leader, planned the operation and conducted it directly, even bypassing the president, who was kept in the dark about Operation Blue Star.
• The operation was a political event developed politically over a period and culminated in a military operation and was followed by a general massacre of Sikhs.
• It was aimed at teaching a lesson to Sikhs and increase vote bank among Hindus
• There was a strong Hindu-Sikh divide created to justify the operation. Jullunder Hindu Newspapers acted overzealously in this regard. Major Indian media also helped this propaganda.
• A clear division was created between Hindus and Sikhs through planned propaganda and the spread of rumors, which took a long time to heal.
• This followed a rhythmic propaganda of maligning the Sikhs by the next prime minister to win over votes, where the entire media played to his tune.
• Raj Dharam was totally abandoned.
• The voice of Sikhs was not heard anywhere. Even the lone Sikh speaker, S. Khushwant Singh was interrupted in Parliament when stating the facts and pain of Sikhs.
• Some Sikhs were used to keep a face that all the Sikhs were not for the agenda set by Akalis and considered Bhindranwale an anti-national.
• The betrayal by some like Giani Zail Singh, the President, S. Darbara Singh, Amarjit Kaur, Lt General RS Dayal, and Major Gen. K. S. Brar hurt the Sikh psyche. Sikhs were used by the powerful Indira Gandhi against their own brethren.
• Punjab had to face long unrest and frequent killing of youths in encounters for over 10 years. It affected not only peace but also the economy, making Punjab a bankrupt state.
• Most of the youth referred to leaving the country since they found their lives in danger. This trend has been increasing continuously ever since.
• The industry was nearly closed, and business was badly hampered, hitting the economy of the state very badly.

(Chapter of my Published book Recollections of Ghallughara, 1984)​