Operation Blue Star
A Violent Chapter Of Indian History
Operation Blue Star
Operation Blue Star was an Indian military operation also termed as the attack on the Akal Takhat and the Golden Temple complex. It was during this period (June 1 - 6, 1984) some 27 years ago that Operation Blue Star flushed out Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and his separatist followers from the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
According to the Indian Government, Bhindranwale was using the shrine as a refuge and had piled up weapons for use in hate crimes against non-Sikhs.
But to this day the scars of 1984 are visible. The siege on the temple lasted three days and claimed many innocent lives. Though the operation was the brainchild of the Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi, she later regretted it. The military action led to her assignation some two months after Operation Blue Star. Months later Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her 2 Sikh bodyguards which was considered as a revenge against her operation on the holy shrine. The so called operation against "Terror in Punjab" was over with the Death of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, but what followed after that was the biggest massacres of Indian History, the biggest political disgrace after the Indo-Pak Partition. Few hours after Indira Gandhi's assassination, the newly made prime minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi, son of Indira Gandhi, gave a brutal order to kill all the Sikh's in the country which led to the most talked about Riots of 1984, killing many innocent lives... Read On...
★ What was Operation Blue Star? ★
It was an Indian military operation, ordered by Indira Gandhi, then Prime Minister of India, under the pretext of removing Sikh separatists from the Golden Temple in Amritsar. The insurgents, led by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, were accused of amassing weapons in the Sikh temple.
The Golden Temple Compound
The then Vice-Chief of Indian Army SK Sinha was first asked to lead the operation, but he advised against it saying it this would hurt Sikh sentiments. Indira Gandhi replaced him with Lt Gen A S Vaidya, who along with Lt Gen K Sundarji then planned the operation.
Lt Gen A S Vaidya along with Lt Gen K Sundarji
Operation Blue Star
Operation Blue Star
Operation Blue Star
The military assault led to an uproar amongst Sikhs worldwide and the increased tension following the action led to assaults on members of the Sikh community within India. Some Sikh soldiers in the Indian army mutinied, many Sikhs resigned from armed and civil administrative office and a few returned awards and honors they had received from the Indian government. Four months after the operation, on 31 October 1984, Indira Gandhi was assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards in what is viewed as an act of
vengeance.
Operation Blue Star - Akal Takhat
Following her assassination, more than 5000 Sikhs were killed in anti-Sikh pogroms. Within the Sikh community itself, Operation Blue Star has taken on considerable historical significance and is often compared to what Sikhs call 'the great massacre', the 1761 slaughter of Sikhs by the Afghan invader Ahmad Shah Abdali.
Operation Blue Star
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 everything 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."
★ Who was Bhindranwale? ★
Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale
Born in 1947, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale was enrolled in a religious school. Later, he travelled across Punjab to teach and persuade people to live life according to the tenets of Sikhism. He became the new leader of Damdami Taksal, a 300-year-old educational organisation founded by Guru Gobind Singh, when his guru Kartar Singh died in an accident. That was his first step to power.
Bhindranwale at the Golden Temple in 1982
Though he was not successful in electoral politics, he wielded a great deal of authority using which he overthrew the authority of the Shiromani Akali Dal. He became so powerful that political leaders in Punjab could not take any major decision without first seeking his assent.
Bhindranwale at the Golden Temple in 1982
His support for the creation of a Sikh majority nation of Khalistan led to his fall-out with the Indira Gandhi regime. In the early eighties, Sikh extremists who dreamt of carving out an independent nation, had slowly begun to take control of the state by unleashing terror and killing hundreds of non-Sikhs.
Bhindranwale was seen as an inciter, running his campaign from the confines of the Golden Temple. He had turned the holiest shrine of the Sikhs into a safe haven for his followers. He openly defied the centre, but the state police did not dare to take any action against him.
Bhindranwale at the Golden Temple in 1982
Some people believed he lived all his life by the principle of hate and spurred the killings of innocent people, and was killed during Operation Blue Star.
★ Problem in Punjab? ★
In 1947 when India was divided on the basis of religion, Punjab was split between India and Pakistan. Sikhs opposed the partition and felt they were being treated shabbily. When the idea of Pakistan was put forth, Sikhs said they should have a nation for themselves. Thus the idea of Khalistan was born.
Bhindranwale at the Golden Temple in 1982
Punjab in India was a Hindu majority state and the Sikhs felt that they were being discriminated against. Many eminent Sikhs alleged that the Indian government was conspiring to destroy the Sikh community and their culture.
Bhindranwale at the Golden Temple in 1982
The States Reorganisation Commission rejected their demand for a separate state, a move that reinforced the feeling that the Sikhs were being discriminated against.
Bhindranwale at the Golden Temple in 1982
Events after partition, some groups convinced many Sikhs that they were being discriminated against. Calls for the creation of Khalistan became violent and anti-Indian.
★ Aftermath of Operation Blue Star? ★
The gurudwara complex during Operation Bluestar in 1984
Sikhs across the world were shocked when news poured in that the Golden Temple had been captured by Indian armed forces.
Many Sikhs in prominent administrative positions resigned in protest, and many in the armed forces quit. Sikhs also returned awards and honors they had received from the Indian government, the most prominent being author Khushwant Singh who returned his Padma Bhushan.
Indira Gandhi's funeral in Delhi on October 31' 1984
The operation also led to the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on October 31. She was gunned down by two of her Sikh bodyguards, Satwant Singh and Beant Singh.
Riots in the city following Indira Gandhi's death
The assassination triggered anti-Sikh riots that went on for four days when Congress supporters went on a rampage killing Sikh men and women, destroying homes, and attacking Gurdwaras.
Riots in the city following Indira Gandhi's death
★ Some Disturbing images of the Delhi Massacres ★
Riots in the city following Indira Gandhi's death - Delhi Massacres
A List Of those Innocent people who shed their lives.
May their souls rest in peace.
Operation Blue Star was not an attack to the Sikh Holy Shrine or Sikh Culture & Values, but it was an attack to all the innocent peoples who died in this brutal operation and in the massacre of 1984. Justice has not been served and is still pending. For many it was just another political disgrace or mere a heart melting story, but for people who were really effected by this it was a TIME WHICH COULD NOT BE FORGOTTEN...
★ NEVER FORGET 84 ★
(Inputs from http://www.sikhiwiki.org)
(Pictures: Google, http://www.sikhmuseum.com)
(Special Thanks : http://www.neverforget84.com)
REGARDZ:
SUNNY DHANOE
सन्नी बाबू
ReplyDeleteऐसा मत करो,
पोस्ट साथ-साथ होनी चाहिए,
Going abroad.Would be able to see your post only after 20th June.Wishing you all the best for presenting the new post.
ReplyDeleteSandeep - haha...Bro i was little busy in making sum last moment changes in the post, so just posted the Title, here is the complete post 4u :D
ReplyDeleteRakesh Sir - Thanks, N all the best... Hv a Safe Journey!
THIS IS THE OUTCOME OF DIRTY AMBITIOUS POLITICAL GAME.
ReplyDeleteLike Osama who was patronized by USA to throw out Russia from Afghanistan in 1970-80, It is well known that Bhindrawala too was paternoster by Indra Gandhi to check AkalIi Dal's political advances when Punjabi Suba movement was at peak in 1960's. It is well known to the people of Punjab that at one point of time Bhindrawala Sant was convasing for the success of Giani Zail Singh's (former President of India at the time of Indra Gandhi) parliamentary election from Hoshiarpur. At that time BJP ( then Jan Sangh) & Akali Dal were arch rivals, but now there are friends and collaborators against Congress. Moral: Everywhere black spots in history i are due to ambitious ruling and powerful politicians. O God save India from them.
So much for the 'Secular Congress'.
ReplyDeleteWhen Congress Leaders and Congress Workers Kill 17000 Sikhs it is not communalism... Why???
Does the Congress think that Sikhs are not humans?????
Not a single congress politician has been punished till date for the atrocities committed against the Sikhs...
While these same Congress people do not miss a single opportunity to create impediments in the path of Narendra Modi claiming that he is communal...
Bull S*** ...
These Gandhis destroyed our nation...
@Mahie - Your are absolutely rite... Congress has been doing these kind of crimes since ages... They are playing this dirty political game since India's Independence... Operation Blue Star and the Riots after Indira's Death were some of the examples of a Dictatorial behavior Of Congress. The whole of Punjab and especially the Golden Temple Complex, was turned into a murderous mouse trap.
ReplyDeleteThere's alawys a better way of tackling thngs, I just want to ask one question, if Osama was in Mecca or Vatican, the holy shrines of Muslims & Christians respectively, wud US bombard missiles over it as what was done by the Indian Army on Akal Takhat in Golden Temple to kill a Terrorist.... A Big Shame on the Indira Government and Rajeev Gandhi...
I can Never Forget 84... It was .I.N.J.U.S.T.I.C.E. And Justice is Still Pending.
#NeverForget84
Guru Nanak ji said in 'Guru Vaani'
ReplyDeleteखुरासान खसमाना कीआ हिन्दुसतानु डराइआ
आपै दोसु न देई करता जमु करि मुगलु चडाइआ
एती मार पई करलाणे तैं की दरद न आइआ
करता तू सभना का सोई
जे सकता सकते कउ मारे ता मनि रोस न होई.
सकता सीहु मारे पै वगै खसमै सा पुरसाई
रतन विगाडी कुती मुइआ सार न काई
आपे जोड़ी विछोडे आपे वेखु तेरी वडीआई
(हे प्रभु)तुमने हिंदुस्तान को (बाबर)से आतंकित कर दिया है.समस्त घटना तुम्हारे आदेशानुसार घटित हुई,परन्तु तुम अपने ऊपर दोष नहीं लेते.तुमने मुग़ल (बाबर)को यम रूप बनाकर हिंदुस्तान पर चढा दिया है.(भारतवासियों)को इतनी बुरी तरह मार पड़ी पर (तुम्हें)दर्द नहीं आया.हे कर्ता ! तुम सभी के एक समान (स्वामी)हो.यदि कोई बलवान बलवान को मारे तो मन में कोई रोष नहीं हो सकता.पर यदि
एक शक्तिमान सिंह गौओं के समूह को मारे तो गौओं के रक्षक से पूछा जाता है कि वह कहाँ था.इन (मुग़ल) कुत्तों ने हीरों जैसे(भारतीयों) को मार्ग की धूलि में मिला दिया है,मार दिया है कि गणना नहीं हो सकती.
(हे प्रभु) तुम स्वयं ही मिलाने वाले हो,स्वयं ही विछोह करने वाले.
यह सब क्रीडा तुम्हारी महत्ता प्रकट करती है.
अंत में नानक जी कहते हैं 'मरि मरि जीवैं ता किछु पाए नानक नाम वखाने' अर्थात जो अहंकार को मिटा कर जीवन जीता है,उसे जीवन का रहस्य ज्ञात हो जाता है.अत: नानक उसी (प्रभु)का नाम स्मरण करता है.
I bow before all Sikh Gurus, and before every true and pious Sikh.
Yes Rakesh Sir, i have read it before, but the way you explained these lines of Guru Vaani is absolutely amazing. I feel proud to be a Sikh more after reading it. I must say you have tremendous knowledge on majority of Holy Granths. I have read ur posts and i'm really a big fan of ur writings.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much sir for sharing this information.
bhindranwale was no terrorist look at his life all he did was fight for sikh rights which were promised by India there wer sikh leaders who worked with congress and wanted to find a way of bringing bhindranwale down by attacking the holiest shrine which they knew he would not go down with a fight the ones who died were real sikhs who died the khalsa has taught the rest traitors of sikh panth whoz aims were higher seats lifed their hands upp n surrenderd they today work with congress ppl like longowal was 1 of them he had a chance to settle everything the anandpursahib resolution which the whole kaum was fighting for bhindranwale was leading the movement but he sat there longowal ate rasgule with rajiv and wanted highr statue lalchi. Bhindranwale a true putther sher of kaum son of guru gobind singh if he was terrorist why did the kaum call him greatest sikh of the centuary and install portraits of him n shaheed at akal takhat apart from that do u know how many youth he convinced to take amrit him being 14 leader of dam dami taksaal started by 10guru himself to india its like a terrorist cam now i feel ashamed to be called indian no justice whatso ever and then we r labbled hindus under constitution as long haired sikh n when sikhs get married we r under HINDU marrige act which even pakistan considers us as sikh shame
ReplyDeletewhat is politics .... kuch vi kaho ... nuksan tan insaniyat da hi hai ... rab ne tan sab nu nanga hi bhejiya ... aah right wrong tan apne rules and ego de pange ne ... na wando rab nu ... na maro insan nu .. na maro insaniyat nu ...
ReplyDeleteSikh is not a different religion from Hindu, they were to save hindus when India was under attack from mughal. They are hindu actually! Operation blue star was very unfortunate, but, necessary because of some youth were misguided by Mr. Jarnail Singh Bhinderwale with the support of Pakistan. Who decided to cut punjab state from India. There are many gurduwaras or temples where sikhs and hindus prayers together for example Bangla Sahib, Shishganj, Golden Temple, Mata Vaishno Devi etc. Actually Sikh is a brave religion of Hindu, please don't consider them a part.
ReplyDeletebahut bura kita jo v kita
ReplyDelete