1984 anti-Sikh riots
Encyclopedia
The 1984 Anti-Sikh pogroms / riots or the 1984 Sikh Massacre was a sikh genocide there was four days of violence in northern India, particularly Delhi
, during which armed mobs killed Sikhs, looted and set fire to Sikh homes, businesses and schools, and attacked gurdwara
s, in response to the assassination of then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards.
In the 1970s, during the Indian Emergency, thousands of Sikhs campaigning for autonomous government were imprisoned. The sporadic violence continued as a result of an armed Sikh separatist
group which was designated as a terrorist entity by the government of India. In June 1984, during Operation Blue Star
, Indira Gandhi
ordered the Indian Army
to secure the Golden Temple and eliminate any sikhs. Later operations
by Indian paramilitary forces were initiated to clear the separatists from the countryside of Punjab. Even today many Sikhs perceived the actions as an assault on their religion and rights, while the issue is contentious with abusive crimes committed by both sides.
The violence in Delhi was triggered by the assassination of Indira Gandhi on 31 October 1984, by two of her Sikh bodyguard
s in response to her actions authorising the military operation. The Government of India reported 2,700 deaths in the ensuing chaos. In the aftermath of the pogrom, the Government of India reported 20,000 had fled the city, however the PUCL reported "at least" 50,000 displaced person
s. The most affected regions were neighborhoods in Delhi
. Human rights organizations and the newspapers know that the massacre was organized. The collusion of political officials in the massacres and the failure to prosecute any killers alienated normal Sikhs and increased support for the Khalistan movement
. The Akal Takht
, the governing religious body of Sikhism
,and people in other states, know that the killings were a Sikh genocide
.
In 2011, Human Rights Watch
reported the Government of India had "yet to prosecute those responsible for the mass killings". The 2011 WikiLeaks cable leaks revealed that the United States
was convinced about the complicity of Indian Government
ruled by the Indian National Congress
in the pogrom, and termed it as "opportunism" and "hatred" of the Congress government against Sikhs. Also in 2011, a new set of mass graves were discovered in Haryana
and Human Rights Watch
reported that "Widespread anti-Sikh attacks in Haryana were part of broader revenge attacks" in India.
launched operation called Operation Bluestar to flush out the separatists hidden in Golden temple along with their leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale
, in which several innocent Sikhs were killed during crossfire and Sikh reference library was burned.
These "riots" are alternately referred to as pogroms or massacres.
(AIIMS), began shouting for revenge with slogans like "Blood for blood" and turned into an unruly mob. At 5:20 PM, President Zail Singh
arrived at the hospital and the mob outside stoned his car. The mob began assaulting Sikhs by stopping cars and buses to pull Sikhs out of them and burn their turbans. The violence on October 31 was restricted to the area around the AIIMS and did not result in any Sikh deaths. People in other parts of Delhi reported their neighborhoods were peaceful.
Throughout the night of October 31 and morning of November 1, Congress leaders met with local supporters to distribute money and weapons. Congress party MP Sajjan Kumar
and Trade Union leader Lalit Maken
handed out 100 rupee
notes and bottles of liquor to assailants. On the morning of November 1, Sajjan Kumar was seen holding rallies in, at least, the following Delhi neighborhoods; in Palam Colony from 6:30 AM to 7:00 AM, in Kiran Gardens from 8:00 AM to 8:30 AM, and in Sultanpuri from around 8:30 AM to 9:00 AM. In Kiran Gardens at 8:00 AM, Sajjan Kumar was seen distributing iron rods from a parked truck to a group of 120 people and instructing them to "attack Sikhs, kill them, and loot and burn their properties". At an undefined time in the morning of November 1, Sajjan Kumar led a mob of people along the Palam Railway main road to the Mangolpuri neighborhood where the crowd answered his calls with chants of "Kill the Sardar
s" and "Indira Gandhi is our mother and these people have killed her". In Sultanpuri, Moti Singh, a Sikh who had served in the Congress party for 20 years heard Sajjan Kumar give the following speech:
In the neighborhood of Sharkapur, Congress (I) leader Shyam Tyagi's home was used as a meeting place for an undefined number of people. H. K. L. Bhagat
, the Minister of Information and Broadcasting
distributed money to Boop Tyagi, Shyam Tyagi's brother, and ordered him to “Keep these two thousand rupees for liquor and do as I have told you.... You need not worry at all. I will look after everything.”
During the night of October 31, Balwan Khokhar, a local Congress (I) party leader who was later implicated in the ensuing massacre, held a meeting at the Ration Shop of Pandit Harkesh in the Palam Colony. At 8:30 AM on November 1, Shankar Lal Sharma, an active Congress party supporter, held a meeting at his shop where he formed a mob and had the people swear to kill Sikhs.
The chief weapon used by the mobs, kerosene
was supplied by a group of Congress Party
leaders who owned filling stations. In Sultanpuri, Brahmanand Gupta, the president of the A-4 block Congress Party distributed oil while Congress Party MP Sajjan Kumar "instructed the crowd to kill Sikhs, and to loot and burn their properties" as he had in other meetings throughout New Delhi. In much the same way, meetings were held in places like Cooperative Colony in Bokaro where P.K. Tripathi, president of the local Congress Party and owner of a gas station in Nara More, provided kerosene to mobs. Aseem Shrivastava, a Masters student at the Delhi School of Economics
described the organized nature of the mobs in an affidavit submitted to the Misra Commission:
A senior official at the Ministry of Home Affairs
informed journalist Ivan Fera, that an arson investigation of several businesses burned in the pogroms had uncovered an unnamed combustible chemical "whose provision required large-scale coordination". Eyewitness reports confirmed the use of a combustible chemical besides kerosene
. The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee later identified 70 affidavits which cited the use of a highly flammable chemical in its written arguments before the Misra Commission.
. The lists were used to find the location of Sikh homes and business, an otherwise impossible task because they were located in unmarked and diverse neighborhoods. On the night of October 31, the night before the massacres began, assailants used the lists to mark the houses of Sikhs with letter "S". In addition, because most of the mobs were illiterate, Congress Party officials provided help in reading the lists and leading the mobs to Sikh homes and businesses in the other neighborhoods. By using the lists the mobs were able to pinpoint the locations of Sikhs they otherwise would have missed.
In some cases, the mobs returned to locations where they knew Sikhs were hiding after consulting their lists. One man, Amar Singh, escaped the initial attack on his house by having a Hindu neighbor drag him into his neighbor's house and declare him dead. However, a group of 18 assailants later came looking for his body, and when his neighbor replied that others had already taken away the body an assailant showed him a list and replied, "Look, Amar Singh’s name has not been struck off from the list so his dead body has not been taken away." Sikh men not in their homes were easily identified by their distinctive turban and beard while Sikh women were identified by their dress.
, credits members of the RSS with helping and protecting Sikh
s who were being targeted by members of the Congress(I) political party during the 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots
. Singh who otherwise has been critical of the RSS and believes that it is a " communal organization and dangerous to the country's secular fabric"
evening and night
The worst affected areas are low income colonies like Trilokpuri, Mongolpuri, Sultanpuri and Palam Colony.
The few areas where the local police stations take prompt measures against mobs see hardly any killings or major violence.
Farsh Bazar and Karol Bagh are two such examples.
Mobs continue to rampage.
There are allegations that the government destroyed evidence and shielded the guilty. Asian Age
, an India
n daily newspaper, ran a front-page story calling the government actions "the mother of all cover-ups."
From 31 October 1984 to 10 November 1984, human rights
groups People's Union for Democratic Rights and People's Union for Civil Liberties
conducted an inquiry into the riots by interviewing victims of the riots, police officers, neighbors of the victims, army personnel and political leaders. In their joint report, entitled Who Are The Guilty?
, they concluded:
Eyewitness accounts obtained by Time
magazine state the Delhi Police
looked on as "rioters murdered and raped, having gotten access to voter records that allowed them to mark Sikh homes with large Xs, and large mobs being bused in to large Sikh settlements". Time
reported the riots only led to minor arrests and that no major politician or police officer had been convicted and quotes Ensaaf, a human rights organization, as saying the government worked to destroy evidence of involvement by refusing to record First Information Report
s.
A Human Rights Watch
report published in 1991 on violence between Sikh separatists
and the Government of India
traces part of the problem back to the government response to the violence:
There are allegations that the violence was led and often perpetrated by Indian National Congress
activists and sympathizers during the riots. The government, then led by the Congress, was widely criticized for doing very little at the time, possibly acting as a conspirator. Voting lists were used to identify Sikh families.
On 31 July 1985, Harjinder Singh Jinda
, Sukhdev Singh Sukha
and Ranjit Singh Gill of Khalistan Commando Force
assassinated Lalit Maken (Member - Parliament of India
and a leader of Congress (I)) to take revenge of 1984 Anti Sikh Riots. In a 31-page booklet titled Who Are The Guilty
, People's Union for Civil Liberties
(PUCL) listed 227 people who led the mobs, Lalit Maken's name was third on the list.
Harjinder Singh Jinda and Sukhdev Singh Sukha also assassinated Congress (I) leader Arjan Dass because of his involvement in 1984 Anti-Sikh riots. Arjan Dass's name appeared in various affidavits submitted by Sikh victims to the Nanavati Commission
which was headed by Justice G.T. Nanavati
, retired Judge of the Supreme Court of India
.
The most recent commission on the riots, headed by Justice G.T. Nanavati, submitted its 185-page report to the Home Minister, Shivraj Patil
on 9 February 2005 and the report was tabled in Parliament on 8 August 2005.
Ten commissions and committees have so far inquired into the riots. The commissions below are listed in the order they were formed. Many of the primary accused were acquitted or never charge-sheeted.
Ved Marwah
, Additional Commissioner of Police, was assigned the job of enquiring into the role of the police during the carnage of November 1984.
Many of the accused officers of Delhi Police went to Delhi High Court
.
As Ved Marwah completed his inquiry towards the middle of 1985, he was abruptly directed by the Home Ministry
not to proceed further. Complete records of the Marwah Commission were taken over by the government and were later transferred to the Misra Commission. However, the most important part of the record, namely the handwritten notes of Mr Marwah, which contained important information, were not transferred to the Misra Commission.
.
Justice Misra submitted his report in August 1986 and the report was made public six months thereafter in February 1987. In his report, Justice Misra stated that it was not part of his terms of reference to identify any person and recommended the formation of three committees.
The commission and its report was criticized by People's Union for Civil Liberties
and Human Rights Watch
as biased. A Human Rights Watch
report recording the Misra Commission noted:
People's Union for Civil Liberties
criticized the Misra commission for keeping information on the accused secret while revealing the names and addresses of victims of violence.
After almost two years, this committee was appointed for the same purpose. This committee consisted of Justice Dalip Kapur and Mrs Kusum Mittal, retired Secretary of Uttar Pradesh
. It submitted its report in 1990. Seventy-two police officers were identified for their connivance or gross negligence. The committee recommended forthwith dismissal of 30 police officers out of 72. However, till date, not a single police officer has been awarded any kind of punishment.
It consisted of Justice M.L. Jain, former Judge of the Delhi High Court
and Mr A.K. Banerjee, retired Inspector General of Police.
The Misra Commission held in its report that a large number of cases had not been registered and wherever the victims named political leaders or police officers, cases were not registered against them. This committee recommended registration of cases against Mr Sajjan Kumar
in August 1987, but no case was registered.
In November 1987, press reports criticized the government for not registering cases despite the recommendation of the committee. In December 1987, one of the co-accused along with Sajjan Kumar, namely Mr Brahmanand Gupta filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court and obtained a stay against this committee. The government did not oppose the stay. The Citizen's Justice Committee
filed an application for vacating the stay. Ultimately, the writ petition was decided in August 1989 and the high court quashed the appointment of this committee. An appeal was filed by the Citizens Justice Committee in the Supreme Court of India
.
. A CBI
team went to Kumar's home to file the charges. His supporters locked them up and threatened them harm if they persisted in their designs on their leader.
As a result of this intimidation, when Potti-Rosha's term expired in September 1990, Potti and Rosha decided to disband their inquiry.
. This committee recommended registration of cases against H.K.L. Bhagat, Sajjan Kumar
, Dharamdas Shastri and Jagdish Tytler
.
The Committee also suggested setting up of two - three Special Investigating Teams in the Delhi Police under a Deputy Commissioner of Police
and the overall supervision by the Additional Commissioner of Police, In-charge - CID and also to review the work-load of the three Special Courts set up to deal with October - November 1984 riots cases exclusively so that these cases could be taken up on day-to-day basis.
The question of appointment of Special Prosecutors to deal with October - November 1984 riots cases exclusively was also discussed. This committee was wound up in August 1993. However, the cases recommended by this committee were not even registered by the police.
This committee submitted its report in August 1987 and gave a figure of 2,733 as the number of Sikhs killed in Delhi alone.
was appointed in 1985 to recommend measures for the rehabilitation of the victims. This committee submitted its report by the end of 1985. One of its major recommendations was that the business establishments, which had insurance cover, but whose insurance claims were not settled by insurance companies on the technical ground that riot was not covered under insurance, should be paid compensation under the directions of the government.
This committee recommended that since all insurance companies were nationalised, they be directed to pay the claims. However, the government did not accept this recommendation and as a result insurance claims were rejected by all insurance companies throughout the country.
government in Delhi. One of the recommendations of the Narula Committee was to convince the Central Government to grant sanction in this matter.
Mr. Khurana
took up the matter with the Central Government and in the middle of 1994, the Central Government decided that the matter did not fall within its purview and sent the case to the Lt. Governor of Delhi. It took two years for the Narasimha Rao
Government to decide that it did not fall within Centre's purview.
Narasimha Rao Government further delayed the case. This committee submitted its report in January 1994 and recommended the registration of cases against H.K.L. Bhagat, Sajjan Kumar
and Jagdish Tytler
. Ultimately, despite the delay by the Central government, the CBI was able to file the charge sheet in December 1994.
was established in 2000 after some dissatisfaction was expressed with previous reports. The Nanavati Commission
was appointed by a unanimous resolution passed in the Rajya Sabha
. This commission was headed by Justice G.T. Nanavati
, retired Judge of the Supreme Court of India
. The commission submitted its report in February 2004. The commission reported that recorded accounts from victims and witnesses to the riots "indicate that local Congress leaders and workers had either incited or helped the mobs in attacking the Sikhs". Its report also found evidence against Jagdish Tytler "to the effect that very probably he had a hand in organising attacks on Sikhs". It also recommended that Sajjan Kumar
's involvement in the rioting required a closer look. The commission's report also cleared Rajiv Gandhi
and other high ranking Congress (I) party members of any involvement in organising riots against Sikhs. It did find, however, that the Delhi Police "remained passive and did not provide protection to the people" throughout the rioting.
(CBI) closed all cases against Jagdish Tytler
in November 2007 for his alleged criminal conspiracy to engineer riots against Sikhs in the aftermath of Indira Gandhi
’s assassination on 31 October 1984.
CBI submitted a report to the Delhi court which stated that no evidence or witness was found to corroborate the allegations against Tytler of leading murderous mobs during 1984 Re-probe Tytler’s role: Court. It was also alleged in the court that then member of Indian Parliament Jagdish Tytler was complaining to his supporters about relatively "small" number of Sikhs killed in his parliamentary constituency Delhi Sadar
, which in his opinion had undermined his position in the ruling Indian National Congress
party of India.
However in December 2007, a certain witness, Jasbir Singh, who is living in California
, appeared on several private television news channels in India, and stated he was never contacted by Central Bureau of Investigation.
India's main opposition party Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) demanded an explanation from the minister in-charge of CBI in Indian Parliament.
However, Minister of State for Personnel Suresh Pachouri
, who is in-charge of department of CBI, and was present in the parliament session, refused to make a statement.
On 18 December 2007, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate of Delhi court, Sanjeev Jain, who had earlier dismissed the case after CBI submitted a misleading report in his court, ordered India's Central Bureau of Investigation to reopen cases relating to 1984 anti-Sikh riots against Jagdish Tytler.
In December 2008, a two-member CBI team was sent to New York to record the statements of two eyewitnesses, Jasbir Singh and Surinder Singh. The two witnesses have stated that they saw Jagdish Tytler lead a mob during the riots, but did not want to come to India as they feared for their security. They also blamed the CBI for not conducting a fair trial and accused it of protecting Tytler.
However, in March 2009, CBI gave a clean chit to Tytler, amidst protests from Sikhs and the opposition parties.
On 7 April 2009, a Sikh reporter with Dainik Jagran
, Jarnail Singh hurled his shoe at home minister P Chidambaram in protest against the clean chit given to Tytler and Sajjan Kumar. He was however let off as the home minister did not want the police to pursue the case, in lieu of the upcoming Lok Sabha (general) elections.
On 9 April 2009, over 500 protesters from various Sikh organisations from all over the country gathered outside the court which was scheduled to hear CBI’s plea of closing the case against Congress leader Jagdish Tytler in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. Later in the day, Tytler announced his decision to pull out of the Lok Sabha elections, saying he does not want to cause embarrassment to his party. This sensitive issue has once again poked its face and Congress does not want this to become an anti-Congress tide. This has forced the Congress party to cut the Tytler and Sajjan Kumar Lok Sabha tickets.
accusing the Indian government of complicity in the riots. The court issued a summons to the Indian Congress Party and Kamal Nath
.
.
Many ordinary Indians of different religious dispositions made significant efforts to hide and help Sikh families during the rioting.
Recently on 15 July 2010 the Sikh high clergy (Jathedar) declared the events following the death of Indira Gandhi to be a Sikh "Genocide" replacing the widely used term "Anti-Sikh riots" used by the Indian government, media and other writers. The decision came soon after a similar motion was raised in the Canadian Parliament by a Sikh MP.
riots have been the core subject of several films and novels.
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
, during which armed mobs killed Sikhs, looted and set fire to Sikh homes, businesses and schools, and attacked gurdwara
Gurdwara
A Gurdwara , meaning the Gateway to the Guru, is the place of worship for Sikhs, the followers of Sikhism. A Gurdwara can be identified from a distance by tall flagpoles bearing the Nishan Sahib ....
s, in response to the assassination of then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards.
In the 1970s, during the Indian Emergency, thousands of Sikhs campaigning for autonomous government were imprisoned. The sporadic violence continued as a result of an armed Sikh separatist
Punjab insurgency
The insurgency in the Indian state of Punjab originated in the late 1970s. The roots of the insurgency were very complex.-Punjabi Suba Movement:In the 1950s and 1960s, linguistic issues in India caused civil disorder when the central government declared Hindi as the national language of India...
group which was designated as a terrorist entity by the government of India. In June 1984, during Operation Blue Star
Operation Blue Star
Operation Blue Star ) 3– 6 June 1984 was an Indian military operation, ordered by Indira Gandhi, then Prime Minister of India, to remove Sikh separatists from the Golden Temple in Amritsar...
, Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
ordered the Indian Army
Indian Army
The Indian Army is the land based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. With about 1,100,000 soldiers in active service and about 1,150,000 reserve troops, the Indian Army is the world's largest standing volunteer army...
to secure the Golden Temple and eliminate any sikhs. Later operations
Operation Woodrose
Operation Woodrose was a military operation carried out by the Indian government in the months after Operation Blue Star to "prevent the outbreak of widespread public protest" in the state of Punjab. The government arrested all prominent members of the largest Sikh political party, the Akali Dal,...
by Indian paramilitary forces were initiated to clear the separatists from the countryside of Punjab. Even today many Sikhs perceived the actions as an assault on their religion and rights, while the issue is contentious with abusive crimes committed by both sides.
The violence in Delhi was triggered by the assassination of Indira Gandhi on 31 October 1984, by two of her Sikh bodyguard
Bodyguard
A bodyguard is a type of security operative or government agent who protects a person—usually a famous, wealthy, or politically important figure—from assault, kidnapping, assassination, stalking, loss of confidential information, terrorist attack or other threats.Most important public figures such...
s in response to her actions authorising the military operation. The Government of India reported 2,700 deaths in the ensuing chaos. In the aftermath of the pogrom, the Government of India reported 20,000 had fled the city, however the PUCL reported "at least" 50,000 displaced person
Displaced person
A displaced person is a person who has been forced to leave his or her native place, a phenomenon known as forced migration.- Origin of term :...
s. The most affected regions were neighborhoods in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
. Human rights organizations and the newspapers know that the massacre was organized. The collusion of political officials in the massacres and the failure to prosecute any killers alienated normal Sikhs and increased support for the Khalistan movement
Khalistan movement
Khalistan refers to a global political secessionist movement to create a separate Sikh state, called Khālistān , carved out of parts mostly consisting of the Punjab region of India, depending on definition....
. The Akal Takht
Akal Takht
The Akal Takht of the Timeless One or Seat of God. It is one of the five seats of temporal authority of the Sikhs equivalent to any parliament of world sovereign country. Akal means The Timeless One - another term for God. Takht means 'seat' or 'throne' in Persian...
, the governing religious body of Sikhism
Sikhism
Sikhism is a monotheistic religion founded during the 15th century in the Punjab region, by Guru Nanak Dev and continued to progress with ten successive Sikh Gurus . It is the fifth-largest organized religion in the world and one of the fastest-growing...
,and people in other states, know that the killings were a Sikh genocide
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
.
In 2011, Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
reported the Government of India had "yet to prosecute those responsible for the mass killings". The 2011 WikiLeaks cable leaks revealed that the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
was convinced about the complicity of Indian Government
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
ruled by the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
in the pogrom, and termed it as "opportunism" and "hatred" of the Congress government against Sikhs. Also in 2011, a new set of mass graves were discovered in Haryana
Haryana
Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...
and Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
reported that "Widespread anti-Sikh attacks in Haryana were part of broader revenge attacks" in India.
Background
In the 1970s, during the Indian Emergency, thousands of Sikhs campaigning for autonomous government were imprisoned. In 1984, Indian ArmyIndian Army
The Indian Army is the land based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. With about 1,100,000 soldiers in active service and about 1,150,000 reserve troops, the Indian Army is the world's largest standing volunteer army...
launched operation called Operation Bluestar to flush out the separatists hidden in Golden temple along with their leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale
Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale
Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale was the leader of the Damdami Taksal, a Sikh religious group based in India, who supported implementation of the Anandpur Sahib Resolution. In 1981, Bhindranwale was arrested for his suspected involvement in the murder of Jagat Narain, the proprietor of the Hind...
, in which several innocent Sikhs were killed during crossfire and Sikh reference library was burned.
Characteristics of violence
After the assassination of Indira Gandhi on 31 October 1984, by two of her Sikh bodyguards, riots erupted on 1 November 1984, and continued in some areas for days, killing over 5000 Sikhs. Sultanpuri, Mangolpuri, Trilokpuri, and other Trans-Yamuna areas of Delhi were the worst affected. Mobs belonging to Congress (I) carried iron rods, knives, clubs, and combustible material, including kerosene. The mobs swarmed into Sikh neighborhoods, arbitrarily killing any Sikh men or women they could find. Their shops and houses were ransacked and burned. In other incidents, armed mobs stopped buses and trains, in and around Delhi, pulling out Sikh passengers to be lynched or doused with kerosene and burnt.This riot would still occur even of Indira Gandhi didn't die.These "riots" are alternately referred to as pogroms or massacres.
Meetings and distribution of weapons
On October 31, the crowd around the All India Institute of Medical SciencesAll India Institute of Medical Sciences
All India Institute of Medical Sciences is a premier medical college and teaching hospital based in New Delhi, India. The Institute operates autonomously under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare ....
(AIIMS), began shouting for revenge with slogans like "Blood for blood" and turned into an unruly mob. At 5:20 PM, President Zail Singh
Zail Singh
Giani Zail Singh was an Indian politician and member of the Congress Party. He served as the seventh President of India.His term was marked by Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Indira Gandhi, and the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. He died of injuries in 1994 after a car accident.-Early Life:He...
arrived at the hospital and the mob outside stoned his car. The mob began assaulting Sikhs by stopping cars and buses to pull Sikhs out of them and burn their turbans. The violence on October 31 was restricted to the area around the AIIMS and did not result in any Sikh deaths. People in other parts of Delhi reported their neighborhoods were peaceful.
Throughout the night of October 31 and morning of November 1, Congress leaders met with local supporters to distribute money and weapons. Congress party MP Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar is an Indian politician belonging to the ruling Indian National Congress party. He was a member of 14th Lok Sabha representing Outer Delhi constituency....
and Trade Union leader Lalit Maken
Lalit Maken
Lalit Maken was a member of Parliament of India, a political leader of Indian National Congress and a labour union leader. Maken was the son-in-law of late President of India Mr. Shankar Dayal Sharma....
handed out 100 rupee
Indian rupee
The Indian rupee is the official currency of the Republic of India. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Reserve Bank of India....
notes and bottles of liquor to assailants. On the morning of November 1, Sajjan Kumar was seen holding rallies in, at least, the following Delhi neighborhoods; in Palam Colony from 6:30 AM to 7:00 AM, in Kiran Gardens from 8:00 AM to 8:30 AM, and in Sultanpuri from around 8:30 AM to 9:00 AM. In Kiran Gardens at 8:00 AM, Sajjan Kumar was seen distributing iron rods from a parked truck to a group of 120 people and instructing them to "attack Sikhs, kill them, and loot and burn their properties". At an undefined time in the morning of November 1, Sajjan Kumar led a mob of people along the Palam Railway main road to the Mangolpuri neighborhood where the crowd answered his calls with chants of "Kill the Sardar
Sardar
Sardar is a title of Indo-Aryan origin that was originally used to denote feudal princes, noblemen, and other aristocrats. It was later applied to indicate a Head of State, a Commander-in-chief, and an Army military rank...
s" and "Indira Gandhi is our mother and these people have killed her". In Sultanpuri, Moti Singh, a Sikh who had served in the Congress party for 20 years heard Sajjan Kumar give the following speech:
In the neighborhood of Sharkapur, Congress (I) leader Shyam Tyagi's home was used as a meeting place for an undefined number of people. H. K. L. Bhagat
H. K. L. Bhagat
Hari Krishan Lal Bhagat was a controversial Indian politician of the Congress party. Earlier he served as Deputy Mayor, Mayor of Delhi and as the chief whip of Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee .- Mass leader of Delhi :...
, the Minister of Information and Broadcasting
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India)
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is a branch of the Government of India is the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules and regulations and laws relating to information, broadcasting, the press and films in India....
distributed money to Boop Tyagi, Shyam Tyagi's brother, and ordered him to “Keep these two thousand rupees for liquor and do as I have told you.... You need not worry at all. I will look after everything.”
During the night of October 31, Balwan Khokhar, a local Congress (I) party leader who was later implicated in the ensuing massacre, held a meeting at the Ration Shop of Pandit Harkesh in the Palam Colony. At 8:30 AM on November 1, Shankar Lal Sharma, an active Congress party supporter, held a meeting at his shop where he formed a mob and had the people swear to kill Sikhs.
The chief weapon used by the mobs, kerosene
Kerosene
Kerosene, sometimes spelled kerosine in scientific and industrial usage, also known as paraffin or paraffin oil in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Africa, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid. The name is derived from Greek keros...
was supplied by a group of Congress Party
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
leaders who owned filling stations. In Sultanpuri, Brahmanand Gupta, the president of the A-4 block Congress Party distributed oil while Congress Party MP Sajjan Kumar "instructed the crowd to kill Sikhs, and to loot and burn their properties" as he had in other meetings throughout New Delhi. In much the same way, meetings were held in places like Cooperative Colony in Bokaro where P.K. Tripathi, president of the local Congress Party and owner of a gas station in Nara More, provided kerosene to mobs. Aseem Shrivastava, a Masters student at the Delhi School of Economics
Delhi School of Economics
Delhi School of Economics , commonly referred to as DSE or D School, is a centre of post graduate learning of the University of Delhi. The centre is situated in the university's North Campus in Maurice Nagar, and is surrounded by a host of other prestigious academic institutions of the country...
described the organized nature of the mobs in an affidavit submitted to the Misra Commission:
A senior official at the Ministry of Home Affairs
Ministry of Home Affairs (India)
Ministry of Home Affairs , known as the Home Ministry or MHA, is an Indian government ministry. It is an interior ministry mainly responsible for the maintenance of Internal security and domestic policy.-Ministerial Team:...
informed journalist Ivan Fera, that an arson investigation of several businesses burned in the pogroms had uncovered an unnamed combustible chemical "whose provision required large-scale coordination". Eyewitness reports confirmed the use of a combustible chemical besides kerosene
Kerosene
Kerosene, sometimes spelled kerosine in scientific and industrial usage, also known as paraffin or paraffin oil in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Africa, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid. The name is derived from Greek keros...
. The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee later identified 70 affidavits which cited the use of a highly flammable chemical in its written arguments before the Misra Commission.
Use of voter lists by the Congress Party
On October 31, Congress party officials provided assailants with voter lists, school registration forms, and ration listsPublic Distribution System
Public Distribution System is an Indian food security system. Established by the Government of India under Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution and managed jointly with state governments in India, it distributes subsidised food and non-food items to India's poor...
. The lists were used to find the location of Sikh homes and business, an otherwise impossible task because they were located in unmarked and diverse neighborhoods. On the night of October 31, the night before the massacres began, assailants used the lists to mark the houses of Sikhs with letter "S". In addition, because most of the mobs were illiterate, Congress Party officials provided help in reading the lists and leading the mobs to Sikh homes and businesses in the other neighborhoods. By using the lists the mobs were able to pinpoint the locations of Sikhs they otherwise would have missed.
In some cases, the mobs returned to locations where they knew Sikhs were hiding after consulting their lists. One man, Amar Singh, escaped the initial attack on his house by having a Hindu neighbor drag him into his neighbor's house and declare him dead. However, a group of 18 assailants later came looking for his body, and when his neighbor replied that others had already taken away the body an assailant showed him a list and replied, "Look, Amar Singh’s name has not been struck off from the list so his dead body has not been taken away." Sikh men not in their homes were easily identified by their distinctive turban and beard while Sikh women were identified by their dress.
Protection of Sikhs by right wing Hindu RSS
Sikh intellectual and author of 'A History of the Sikhs', Khushwant SinghKhushwant Singh
Khushwant Singh is a prominent Indian novelist and journalist. Singh's weekly column, "With Malice towards One and All", carried by several Indian newspapers, is among the most widely-read columns in the country....
, credits members of the RSS with helping and protecting Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
s who were being targeted by members of the Congress(I) political party during the 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots
1984 anti-Sikh riots
The 1984 Anti-Sikh pogroms / riots or the 1984 Sikh Massacre was a sikh genocide there was four days of violence in northern India, particularly Delhi, during which armed mobs killed Sikhs, looted and set fire to Sikh homes, businesses and schools, and attacked gurdwaras, in response to the...
. Singh who otherwise has been critical of the RSS and believes that it is a " communal organization and dangerous to the country's secular fabric"
First day (31 October)
- 9:20 am: Indira Gandhi is shot by two of her Sikh security guards at her residence, No. 1 Safdarjung Road, and rushed to All India Institute of Medical SciencesAll India Institute of Medical SciencesAll India Institute of Medical Sciences is a premier medical college and teaching hospital based in New Delhi, India. The Institute operates autonomously under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare ....
(AIIMS). - 10:50 am: Indira Gandhi dies.
- 11:00 am: All India RadioAll India RadioAll India Radio , officially known since 1956 as Akashvani , is the radio broadcaster of India and a division of Prasar Bharati. Established in 1936, it is the sister service of Prasar Bharati's Doordarshan, the national television broadcaster. All India Radio is one of the largest radio networks...
listeners learn that the two security guards who shot Indira Gandhi were Sikhs. - 4:00 pm: Rajiv GandhiRajiv GandhiRajiv Ratna Gandhi was the sixth Prime Minister of India . He took office after his mother's assassination on 31 October 1984; he himself was assassinated on 21 May 1991. He became the youngest Prime Minister of India when he took office at the age of 40.Rajiv Gandhi was the elder son of Indira...
returns from West Bengal and reaches AIIMS. Stray incidents of attacks in and around that area. - 5:30 pm: The motorcade of President Zail SinghZail SinghGiani Zail Singh was an Indian politician and member of the Congress Party. He served as the seventh President of India.His term was marked by Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Indira Gandhi, and the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. He died of injuries in 1994 after a car accident.-Early Life:He...
, who is returning from a foreign visit, is stoned as it approaches AIIMS.
evening and night
- Organized and well equipped gangs of ruffians set-up by ruling Congress-I party workers set out in different directions from AIIMS.
- The violence, including violence towards Sikhs and destruction of Sikh properties, spreads.
- Rajiv Gandhi is sworn in as the Prime Minister.
- Senior advocate and opposition leader Ram JethmalaniRam JethmalaniRam Jethmalani, : राम जेठ्मलानी,: رام جيٺملاڻي born 14 September 1923, in Shikharpur in Sindh, British India) is an Indian lawyer and politician. He has served in various posts such as Union Law Minister and Chairman of Bar Associations...
, meets Home Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao and urges him to take immediate steps to protect Sikhs from further attacks. - Delhi's Lt. Governor, P.G. Gavai and Police Commissioner, S.C. Tandon, visits some of the affected areas.
Second day (1 November)
- The first killing of a Sikh occurs in east Delhi.
- 9:00 am: Armed mobs take over the streets of Delhi and launch a massacre.
- Among the first targets are GurdwaraGurdwaraA Gurdwara , meaning the Gateway to the Guru, is the place of worship for Sikhs, the followers of Sikhism. A Gurdwara can be identified from a distance by tall flagpoles bearing the Nishan Sahib ....
s, the holy temples of Sikhs, possibly to prevent Sikhs from collecting there and putting up a combined defense.
The worst affected areas are low income colonies like Trilokpuri, Mongolpuri, Sultanpuri and Palam Colony.
The few areas where the local police stations take prompt measures against mobs see hardly any killings or major violence.
Farsh Bazar and Karol Bagh are two such examples.
Third day (2 November)
- Curfew is announced throughout Delhi, but is not enforced. The Army deployed throughout Delhi too but ineffective because the police did not co-operate with soldiers (who are not allowed to open fire without the consent of senior police officers and executive magistrates).
Mobs continue to rampage.
Fourth day (3 November)
- Violence continues. By late evening, the national Army and local police units work together to subdue the violence. After law enforcement intervention, violence is comparatively mild and sporadic.In Delhi the dead bodies of the victims of riots were taken to All India Institute of Medical Sciences New Delhi and Civil Hospital Mortuary Tis hazari, Delhi.
Aftermath
The Delhi High Court, while pronouncing its verdict on a riots-related case in 2009, stated:There are allegations that the government destroyed evidence and shielded the guilty. Asian Age
Asian Age
The Asian Age is an Indian daily newspaper with editions in four major cities in India and one in London. The newspaper was launched in February 1994, simultaneously in Delhi, Mumbai and London. At present, it has editions in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore and London. The Asian Age brings out...
, an India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n daily newspaper, ran a front-page story calling the government actions "the mother of all cover-ups."
From 31 October 1984 to 10 November 1984, human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
groups People's Union for Democratic Rights and People's Union for Civil Liberties
People's Union for Civil Liberties
People's Union for Civil Liberties is a human rights body formed in India in 1976 by socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan, as the People's Union for Civil Liberties and Democratic Rights .-The indian emergency:...
conducted an inquiry into the riots by interviewing victims of the riots, police officers, neighbors of the victims, army personnel and political leaders. In their joint report, entitled Who Are The Guilty?
Who Are The Guilty
Who are the guilty is a report published by two Delhi based human rights organizations PUDR and PUCL in November 1984 after conducting investigations into widespread murder, looting and rioting during 1984 Anti-Sikh riots.- External links :#http://www.sacw.net/aii/WhoaretheGuilty.html Who are the...
, they concluded:
The attacks on members of the Sikh Community in Delhi and its suburbs during the period, far from being a spontaneous expression of "madness" and of popular "grief and anger" at Mrs. Gandhi's assassination as made out to be by the authorities, were the outcome of a well organised plan marked by acts of both deliberate commissions and omissions by important politicians of the Congress (I) at the top and by authorities in the administration.
Eyewitness accounts obtained by Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine state the Delhi Police
Department of Police, Delhi
The Department of Police , also known as Delhi Police , is the main law and order agency for the National Capital Territory of Delhi...
looked on as "rioters murdered and raped, having gotten access to voter records that allowed them to mark Sikh homes with large Xs, and large mobs being bused in to large Sikh settlements". Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
reported the riots only led to minor arrests and that no major politician or police officer had been convicted and quotes Ensaaf, a human rights organization, as saying the government worked to destroy evidence of involvement by refusing to record First Information Report
First Information Report
A First Information Report or FIR is a written document prepared by the police in India, Pakistan and Japan when they receive information about the commission of a cognizable offence. It is a report of information that reaches the police first in point of time and that is why it is called the First...
s.
A Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
report published in 1991 on violence between Sikh separatists
Khalistan movement
Khalistan refers to a global political secessionist movement to create a separate Sikh state, called Khālistān , carved out of parts mostly consisting of the Punjab region of India, depending on definition....
and the Government of India
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
traces part of the problem back to the government response to the violence:
Despite numerous credible eye-witness accounts that identified many of those involved in the violence, including police and politicians, in the months following the killings, the government sought no prosecutions or indictments of any persons, including officials, accused in any case of murder, rape or arson.
There are allegations that the violence was led and often perpetrated by Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
activists and sympathizers during the riots. The government, then led by the Congress, was widely criticized for doing very little at the time, possibly acting as a conspirator. Voting lists were used to identify Sikh families.
On 31 July 1985, Harjinder Singh Jinda
Harjinder Singh Jinda
Harjinder Singh Jinda was a member of a Sikh organization Khalistan Commando Force and one of the two assassins of Arun Vaidya . He was responsible for three high-profile killings; Arjan Dass, Lalit Maken and Gen. Vaidya...
, Sukhdev Singh Sukha
Sukhdev Singh Sukha
Sukhdev Singh Sukha was a member of the militant organization Khalistan Commando Force and one of the assassins of Arun Vaidya, the Chief of Indian army at the time of Operation Bluestar and also the architect of Operation Bluestar. He was responsible for three high-profile killings; Arjan Dass,...
and Ranjit Singh Gill of Khalistan Commando Force
Khalistan Commando Force
The Khalistan Commando Force or KCF is a private paramilitary organization operating in the Indian state of Punjab. According to the US State Department, and the Assistant Inspector General of the Punjab Police Intelligence Division, the KCF was responsible for the deaths of thousands in India,...
assassinated Lalit Maken (Member - Parliament of India
Parliament of India
The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body in India. Founded in 1919, the Parliament alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all political bodies in India. The Parliament of India comprises the President and the two Houses, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha...
and a leader of Congress (I)) to take revenge of 1984 Anti Sikh Riots. In a 31-page booklet titled Who Are The Guilty
Who Are The Guilty
Who are the guilty is a report published by two Delhi based human rights organizations PUDR and PUCL in November 1984 after conducting investigations into widespread murder, looting and rioting during 1984 Anti-Sikh riots.- External links :#http://www.sacw.net/aii/WhoaretheGuilty.html Who are the...
, People's Union for Civil Liberties
People's Union for Civil Liberties
People's Union for Civil Liberties is a human rights body formed in India in 1976 by socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan, as the People's Union for Civil Liberties and Democratic Rights .-The indian emergency:...
(PUCL) listed 227 people who led the mobs, Lalit Maken's name was third on the list.
Harjinder Singh Jinda and Sukhdev Singh Sukha also assassinated Congress (I) leader Arjan Dass because of his involvement in 1984 Anti-Sikh riots. Arjan Dass's name appeared in various affidavits submitted by Sikh victims to the Nanavati Commission
Nanavati commission
The Justice G.T. Nanavati commission was established by the Indian Government in 2000 to investigate the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots.-Creation:The commission was appointed by the National Democratic Alliance government on 8 May 2000 to look into certain matters emanating from the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots....
which was headed by Justice G.T. Nanavati
G.T. Nanavati
Girish Thakorlal Nanavati is a retired judge from the Supreme Court of India. After his retirement he has headed two commissions inquiring into the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots and the Godhra riots.-Early life:...
, retired Judge of the Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
.
Investigations
Numerous commissions have been set up to investigate the riots.The most recent commission on the riots, headed by Justice G.T. Nanavati, submitted its 185-page report to the Home Minister, Shivraj Patil
Shivraj Patil
Shivraj Vishwanath Patil is an Indian politician and current state Punjab governor and the Administrator of Union Territory of Chandigarh. Previously he had been the Speaker of the 11th Lok Sabha and served the Manmohan Singh cabinet as the Union Minister of Home Affairs...
on 9 February 2005 and the report was tabled in Parliament on 8 August 2005.
Ten commissions and committees have so far inquired into the riots. The commissions below are listed in the order they were formed. Many of the primary accused were acquitted or never charge-sheeted.
Marwah Commission
This commission was appointed in November 1984.Ved Marwah
Ved Marwah
Ved Prakash Marwah is a former governor of Manipur, Mizoram and Jharkhand.He was born in Peshawar, which is now situated in Pakistan...
, Additional Commissioner of Police, was assigned the job of enquiring into the role of the police during the carnage of November 1984.
Many of the accused officers of Delhi Police went to Delhi High Court
Delhi High Court
The High Court of Delhi was established on 31 October 1966. The High Court of Delhi was established with four judges. They were Chief Justice K. S. Hegde, Justice I. D. Dua, Justice H. R. Khanna and Justice S. K. Kapur.-History:...
.
As Ved Marwah completed his inquiry towards the middle of 1985, he was abruptly directed by the Home Ministry
Minister for Home Affairs (India)
The Home Minister, or more properly the Minister for Home Affairs, is a position in the Indian Cabinet, at both State and Union levels. The Home Ministry is one of the most important, powerful and high profile ministry after the Prime Minister...
not to proceed further. Complete records of the Marwah Commission were taken over by the government and were later transferred to the Misra Commission. However, the most important part of the record, namely the handwritten notes of Mr Marwah, which contained important information, were not transferred to the Misra Commission.
Misra Commission
Misra commission was appointed in May 1985. Justice Rangnath Misra, was a sitting judge of the Supreme Court of IndiaSupreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
.
Justice Misra submitted his report in August 1986 and the report was made public six months thereafter in February 1987. In his report, Justice Misra stated that it was not part of his terms of reference to identify any person and recommended the formation of three committees.
The commission and its report was criticized by People's Union for Civil Liberties
People's Union for Civil Liberties
People's Union for Civil Liberties is a human rights body formed in India in 1976 by socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan, as the People's Union for Civil Liberties and Democratic Rights .-The indian emergency:...
and Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
as biased. A Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
report recording the Misra Commission noted:
It recommended no criminal prosecution of any individual, and it cleared all high-level officials of directing the riots. In its findings, the commission did acknowledge that many of the victims testifying before it had received threats from local police. While the commission noted that there had been "widespread lapses" on the part of the police, it concluded that "the allegations before the commission about the conduct of the police are more of indifference and negligence during the riots than of any wrongful overt act."
People's Union for Civil Liberties
People's Union for Civil Liberties
People's Union for Civil Liberties is a human rights body formed in India in 1976 by socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan, as the People's Union for Civil Liberties and Democratic Rights .-The indian emergency:...
criticized the Misra commission for keeping information on the accused secret while revealing the names and addresses of victims of violence.
Kapur Mittal Committee
Kapur Mittal Committee was appointed in February 1987 on the recommendation of the Misra Commission to inquire into the role of the police, which the Marwah Commission had almost completed in 1985 itself, when the government asked that committee to wind up and not proceed further.After almost two years, this committee was appointed for the same purpose. This committee consisted of Justice Dalip Kapur and Mrs Kusum Mittal, retired Secretary of Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
. It submitted its report in 1990. Seventy-two police officers were identified for their connivance or gross negligence. The committee recommended forthwith dismissal of 30 police officers out of 72. However, till date, not a single police officer has been awarded any kind of punishment.
Jain Banerjee Committee
This committee was recommended by the Misra Commission for recommending registration of cases.It consisted of Justice M.L. Jain, former Judge of the Delhi High Court
Delhi High Court
The High Court of Delhi was established on 31 October 1966. The High Court of Delhi was established with four judges. They were Chief Justice K. S. Hegde, Justice I. D. Dua, Justice H. R. Khanna and Justice S. K. Kapur.-History:...
and Mr A.K. Banerjee, retired Inspector General of Police.
The Misra Commission held in its report that a large number of cases had not been registered and wherever the victims named political leaders or police officers, cases were not registered against them. This committee recommended registration of cases against Mr Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar is an Indian politician belonging to the ruling Indian National Congress party. He was a member of 14th Lok Sabha representing Outer Delhi constituency....
in August 1987, but no case was registered.
In November 1987, press reports criticized the government for not registering cases despite the recommendation of the committee. In December 1987, one of the co-accused along with Sajjan Kumar, namely Mr Brahmanand Gupta filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court and obtained a stay against this committee. The government did not oppose the stay. The Citizen's Justice Committee
Citizen's Justice Committee
Citizen's Justice Committee is an umbrella organization of various human rights organizations and is known for pro bono representing the 1984 anti-Sikh riots victims in their legal battle to gain justice.-Formation:...
filed an application for vacating the stay. Ultimately, the writ petition was decided in August 1989 and the high court quashed the appointment of this committee. An appeal was filed by the Citizens Justice Committee in the Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
.
Potti Rosha Committee
Potti Rosha Committee was appointed in March 1990, by the V.P. Singh government, as a successor to the Jain Banerjee Committee. In August 1990, Potti-Rosha issued recommendations for filing cases based on affidavits victims of the violence had submitted. There was one against Sajjan KumarSajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar is an Indian politician belonging to the ruling Indian National Congress party. He was a member of 14th Lok Sabha representing Outer Delhi constituency....
. A CBI
Central Bureau of Investigation
The Central Bureau of Investigation is a government agency of India that serves as a criminal investigation body, national security agency and intelligence agency. It was established on 1 April 1963 and evolved from the Special Police Establishment founded in 1941...
team went to Kumar's home to file the charges. His supporters locked them up and threatened them harm if they persisted in their designs on their leader.
As a result of this intimidation, when Potti-Rosha's term expired in September 1990, Potti and Rosha decided to disband their inquiry.
Jain Aggarwal Committee
The committee was appointed in December 1990 as a successor to the Potti Rosha Committee. It consisted of Justice J.D. Jain, retired Judge of the Delhi High Court and Mr D.K. Aggarwal, retired DGP of Uttar PradeshUttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
. This committee recommended registration of cases against H.K.L. Bhagat, Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar is an Indian politician belonging to the ruling Indian National Congress party. He was a member of 14th Lok Sabha representing Outer Delhi constituency....
, Dharamdas Shastri and Jagdish Tytler
Jagdish Tytler
Jagdish Tytler is a controversial Indian National Congress politician, and former member of Indian Parliament...
.
The Committee also suggested setting up of two - three Special Investigating Teams in the Delhi Police under a Deputy Commissioner of Police
Deputy Commissioner of Police
Deputy commissioner of police may be:* Deputy commissioner of police , a senior police rank in Indian Police* Deputy commissioner of police of the metropolis, the deputy head of the London Metropolitan Police* Deputy commissioner of police...
and the overall supervision by the Additional Commissioner of Police, In-charge - CID and also to review the work-load of the three Special Courts set up to deal with October - November 1984 riots cases exclusively so that these cases could be taken up on day-to-day basis.
The question of appointment of Special Prosecutors to deal with October - November 1984 riots cases exclusively was also discussed. This committee was wound up in August 1993. However, the cases recommended by this committee were not even registered by the police.
Ahuja Committee
Ahuja Committee was the third committee recommended by the Misra Commission to ascertain the total number of killings in Delhi.This committee submitted its report in August 1987 and gave a figure of 2,733 as the number of Sikhs killed in Delhi alone.
Dhillon Committee
The Dhillon Committee, headed by Mr Gurdial Singh DhillonGurdial Singh Dhillon
Dr. Gurdial Singh Dhillon was a Punjabi politician in the Indian National Congress party. He was President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and Indian High Commissioner to Canada .-Early life:...
was appointed in 1985 to recommend measures for the rehabilitation of the victims. This committee submitted its report by the end of 1985. One of its major recommendations was that the business establishments, which had insurance cover, but whose insurance claims were not settled by insurance companies on the technical ground that riot was not covered under insurance, should be paid compensation under the directions of the government.
This committee recommended that since all insurance companies were nationalised, they be directed to pay the claims. However, the government did not accept this recommendation and as a result insurance claims were rejected by all insurance companies throughout the country.
Narula Committee
Narula Committee was appointed in December 1993 by the Madan Lal KhuranaMadan Lal Khurana
Madan Lal Khurana is an Indian politician and former Chief Minister of Delhi. He has also served as the Governor of Rajasthan.-Early life:...
government in Delhi. One of the recommendations of the Narula Committee was to convince the Central Government to grant sanction in this matter.
Mr. Khurana
Madan Lal Khurana
Madan Lal Khurana is an Indian politician and former Chief Minister of Delhi. He has also served as the Governor of Rajasthan.-Early life:...
took up the matter with the Central Government and in the middle of 1994, the Central Government decided that the matter did not fall within its purview and sent the case to the Lt. Governor of Delhi. It took two years for the Narasimha Rao
Narasimha Rao
Narasimha Rao or Narasimharao is one of the Indian names.* Pamulaparthi Venkata Narasimha Rao served as the 10th Prime Minister of India.* Modireddy Venkat Narasimha Rao, is a former Indian cricketer....
Government to decide that it did not fall within Centre's purview.
Narasimha Rao Government further delayed the case. This committee submitted its report in January 1994 and recommended the registration of cases against H.K.L. Bhagat, Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar is an Indian politician belonging to the ruling Indian National Congress party. He was a member of 14th Lok Sabha representing Outer Delhi constituency....
and Jagdish Tytler
Jagdish Tytler
Jagdish Tytler is a controversial Indian National Congress politician, and former member of Indian Parliament...
. Ultimately, despite the delay by the Central government, the CBI was able to file the charge sheet in December 1994.
The Nanavati Commission
The Nanavati CommissionNanavati commission
The Justice G.T. Nanavati commission was established by the Indian Government in 2000 to investigate the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots.-Creation:The commission was appointed by the National Democratic Alliance government on 8 May 2000 to look into certain matters emanating from the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots....
was established in 2000 after some dissatisfaction was expressed with previous reports. The Nanavati Commission
Nanavati commission
The Justice G.T. Nanavati commission was established by the Indian Government in 2000 to investigate the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots.-Creation:The commission was appointed by the National Democratic Alliance government on 8 May 2000 to look into certain matters emanating from the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots....
was appointed by a unanimous resolution passed in the Rajya Sabha
Rajya Sabha
The Rajya Sabha or Council of States is the upper house of the Parliament of India. Rajya means "state," and Sabha means "assembly hall" in Sanskrit. Membership is limited to 250 members, 12 of whom are chosen by the President of India for their expertise in specific fields of art, literature,...
. This commission was headed by Justice G.T. Nanavati
G.T. Nanavati
Girish Thakorlal Nanavati is a retired judge from the Supreme Court of India. After his retirement he has headed two commissions inquiring into the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots and the Godhra riots.-Early life:...
, retired Judge of the Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
. The commission submitted its report in February 2004. The commission reported that recorded accounts from victims and witnesses to the riots "indicate that local Congress leaders and workers had either incited or helped the mobs in attacking the Sikhs". Its report also found evidence against Jagdish Tytler "to the effect that very probably he had a hand in organising attacks on Sikhs". It also recommended that Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar
Sajjan Kumar is an Indian politician belonging to the ruling Indian National Congress party. He was a member of 14th Lok Sabha representing Outer Delhi constituency....
's involvement in the rioting required a closer look. The commission's report also cleared Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Ratna Gandhi was the sixth Prime Minister of India . He took office after his mother's assassination on 31 October 1984; he himself was assassinated on 21 May 1991. He became the youngest Prime Minister of India when he took office at the age of 40.Rajiv Gandhi was the elder son of Indira...
and other high ranking Congress (I) party members of any involvement in organising riots against Sikhs. It did find, however, that the Delhi Police "remained passive and did not provide protection to the people" throughout the rioting.
Jagdish Tytler
India's Central Bureau of InvestigationCentral Bureau of Investigation
The Central Bureau of Investigation is a government agency of India that serves as a criminal investigation body, national security agency and intelligence agency. It was established on 1 April 1963 and evolved from the Special Police Establishment founded in 1941...
(CBI) closed all cases against Jagdish Tytler
Jagdish Tytler
Jagdish Tytler is a controversial Indian National Congress politician, and former member of Indian Parliament...
in November 2007 for his alleged criminal conspiracy to engineer riots against Sikhs in the aftermath of Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
’s assassination on 31 October 1984.
CBI submitted a report to the Delhi court which stated that no evidence or witness was found to corroborate the allegations against Tytler of leading murderous mobs during 1984 Re-probe Tytler’s role: Court. It was also alleged in the court that then member of Indian Parliament Jagdish Tytler was complaining to his supporters about relatively "small" number of Sikhs killed in his parliamentary constituency Delhi Sadar
Delhi Sadar (Lok Sabha constituency)
Delhi Sadar Lok Sabha constituency was one of the Lok Sabha constituencies in the National Capital Territory of Delhi from 1956-2008.-Assembly segments:...
, which in his opinion had undermined his position in the ruling Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
party of India.
However in December 2007, a certain witness, Jasbir Singh, who is living in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, appeared on several private television news channels in India, and stated he was never contacted by Central Bureau of Investigation.
India's main opposition party Bharatiya Janata Party
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
(BJP) demanded an explanation from the minister in-charge of CBI in Indian Parliament.
However, Minister of State for Personnel Suresh Pachouri
Suresh Pachouri
Suresh Pachouri is an Indian Politician from the state of Madhya Pradesh. He is a member of the Indian National Congress.- Political career :...
, who is in-charge of department of CBI, and was present in the parliament session, refused to make a statement.
On 18 December 2007, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate of Delhi court, Sanjeev Jain, who had earlier dismissed the case after CBI submitted a misleading report in his court, ordered India's Central Bureau of Investigation to reopen cases relating to 1984 anti-Sikh riots against Jagdish Tytler.
In December 2008, a two-member CBI team was sent to New York to record the statements of two eyewitnesses, Jasbir Singh and Surinder Singh. The two witnesses have stated that they saw Jagdish Tytler lead a mob during the riots, but did not want to come to India as they feared for their security. They also blamed the CBI for not conducting a fair trial and accused it of protecting Tytler.
However, in March 2009, CBI gave a clean chit to Tytler, amidst protests from Sikhs and the opposition parties.
On 7 April 2009, a Sikh reporter with Dainik Jagran
Dainik Jagran
Dainik Jagran is a Hindi language daily broadsheet newspaper in India. According to the IRS Q1 2010, Dainik Jagran ranks No. 1 among the dailies with a Total Readership of 54,254,000.-Overview:...
, Jarnail Singh hurled his shoe at home minister P Chidambaram in protest against the clean chit given to Tytler and Sajjan Kumar. He was however let off as the home minister did not want the police to pursue the case, in lieu of the upcoming Lok Sabha (general) elections.
On 9 April 2009, over 500 protesters from various Sikh organisations from all over the country gathered outside the court which was scheduled to hear CBI’s plea of closing the case against Congress leader Jagdish Tytler in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. Later in the day, Tytler announced his decision to pull out of the Lok Sabha elections, saying he does not want to cause embarrassment to his party. This sensitive issue has once again poked its face and Congress does not want this to become an anti-Congress tide. This has forced the Congress party to cut the Tytler and Sajjan Kumar Lok Sabha tickets.
Civil case in New York
On March 14, 2011, an American-based NGO, Sikhs for Justice, filed a civil suit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New YorkUnited States District Court for the Southern District of New York
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is a federal district court. Appeals from the Southern District of New York are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case...
accusing the Indian government of complicity in the riots. The court issued a summons to the Indian Congress Party and Kamal Nath
Kamal Nath
Kamal Nath is an Indian politician and the current Union Cabinet Minister of Urban Development. He is a member of the 15th Lok Sabha of India. He represents the Chhindwara constituency of Madhya Pradesh and is a member of the Indian National Congress .-Early life:Born in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. He...
.
Impact and legacy
The attack on the Sikh community in India is remembered annually in the UK with a remembrance march through London bringing together thousands of Sikhs from all over the UK. The Sikh Pogroms are cited as a reason to support creation of a Sikh homeland in India, often called KhalistanKhalistan
Khalistan refers to a global political secessionist movement to create a separate Sikh state, called Khālistān , carved out of parts mostly consisting of the Punjab region of India, depending on definition....
.
Many ordinary Indians of different religious dispositions made significant efforts to hide and help Sikh families during the rioting.
Recently on 15 July 2010 the Sikh high clergy (Jathedar) declared the events following the death of Indira Gandhi to be a Sikh "Genocide" replacing the widely used term "Anti-Sikh riots" used by the Indian government, media and other writers. The decision came soon after a similar motion was raised in the Canadian Parliament by a Sikh MP.
In popular culture
The DelhiDelhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
riots have been the core subject of several films and novels.
- 2005 English film AmuAmu (film)Amu is a critically acclaimed 2005 film directed by Shonali Bose, based on her own novel by the same name. It stars Konkona Sen Sharma, Brinda Karat, and Ankur Khanna...
, by Shonali BoseShonali BoseShonali Bose is an Indian film director, screenriter and producer. She is known for her film Amu which explores the suppressed history of the genocidal attacks on Sikhs in Delhi twenty-five years ago.-Early life:...
and starring Konkona Sen SharmaKonkona Sen SharmaKonkona Sen Sharma is an Indian actress. She is the daughter of actress and filmmaker Aparna Sen. Sharma appears primarily in Indian arthouse and independent films, and her achievements in the genre have established her as one of the leading actresses of contemporary parallel cinema.Making her...
and Brinda KaratBrinda KaratBrinda Karat is a communist politician from India, elected to the Rajya Sabha as a Communist Party of India CPI member, on 11 April 2005 for West Bengal.In 2005, she became the first woman member of the CPI Politburo...
, is based on Shonali Bose's own novel of the same name. The film portrays story of a girl, orphaned during the riots, reconciling with her adoption years later. The film which won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in EnglishNational Film Award for Best Feature Film in EnglishThe National Film Award for Best Feature Film in English winners:-References:*...
was censored in India and was released on DVD without the cuts. - 2004 Hindi film Kaya TaranKaya TaranKaya Taran is a highly-acclaimed film directed by Sashi Kumar based on Malayalam short story When Big Tree Falls by N.S...
(Chrysalis), directed by Shashi Kumar and starring Seema BiswasSeema BiswasSeema Biswas is an Indian film and theatre actress from Assam who shot into prominence with the role of Phoolan Devi in Shekhar Kapur's film Bandit Queen . She has a reputation for performing strong character roles.Biswas won the 1996 National Film Award for Best Actress for her role in the film...
, is based on the Malayalam short story "When Big Tree FallsWhen Big Tree FallsWhen Big Tree Falls is a short story by acclaimed Malayalam author N. S. Madhavan, adapted into an award winning feature film Kaya Taran by director Sashi Kumar....
" by N.S. Madhavan. The film revolves around a Sikh woman and her young son who have taken shelter in a nunnery in Meerut during the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots. - 2003 Bollywood film HawayeinHawayeinHawayein is a 2003 Bollywood film, directed by Ammtoje Mann. The movie stars Babbu Mann, Ammtoje Mann, and Sunny Mann.The Tagline of the movie was Some winds don’t blow… Yet take away everything.- Plot :...
, directed by Ammtoje MannAmmtoje MannAmmtoje Mann is a Punjabi actor, director, author, and screenwriter. He made two documentary films; Kaafila based on the concept of illegal immigration and Hawayein, based on the aftermath of Indira Gandhi's assassination...
, is based on the aftermath of Indira Gandhi’s assassination, the nationwide 1984 Anti-Sikh riots and the subsequent victimization of the people in Punjab (India) in the years that followed. - Khushwant SinghKhushwant SinghKhushwant Singh is a prominent Indian novelist and journalist. Singh's weekly column, "With Malice towards One and All", carried by several Indian newspapers, is among the most widely-read columns in the country....
's novel "Tragedy of Punjab: Operation Bluestar & After" focuses on the events surrounding the pogrom.
Further reading
- Parvinder Singh. 1984 Sikhs' Kristallnacht. 28-page report, 2009.
- Cynthia Keppley Mahmood. Fighting for Faith and Nation: Dialogues With Sikh Militants. University of Pennsylvania Press, ISBN 978-0-8122-1592-2.
- Cynthia Keppley Mahmood. A Sea Of Orange: Writings on the Sikhs and India. Xlibris Corporation, ISBN 978-1-4010-2857-2
- Ram Narayan Kumar et al. Reduced to Ashes: The Insurgency and Human Rights in Punjab. South Asia Forum for Human RightsSouth Asia Forum for Human RightsThe South Asia Forum for Human Rights is a South Asia-focused human rights organization based in Kathmandu whose mission is to "promote respect for universal standards of human rights with emphasis on universality and interdependence of human rights." They view human rights as interlinked with...
, 2003. Report - Joyce Pettigrew. The Sikhs of the Punjab: Unheard Voices of State and Guerrilla Violence. Zed Books Ltd., 1995.
- Anurag Singh. Giani Kirpal Singh’s Eye-Witness Account of Operation Bluestar. 1999.
- Patwant Singh. The Sikhs. New York: Knopf, 2000.
- Harnik Deol. Religion and Nationalism in India: The Case of the Punjab. London: Routledge, 2000
- Mark Tully. Amritsar: Mrs Gandhi's Last Battle. ISBN 978-0-224-02328-3.
- Ranbir Singh Sandhu. Struggle for Justice: Speeches and Conversations of Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. Ohio: SERF, 1999.
- Iqbal Singh. Punjab Under Siege: A Critical Analysis. New York: Allen, McMillan and Enderson, 1986.
- Paul Brass. Language, Religion and Politics in North India. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1974.
- PUCL report "Who Are The GuiltyWho Are The GuiltyWho are the guilty is a report published by two Delhi based human rights organizations PUDR and PUCL in November 1984 after conducting investigations into widespread murder, looting and rioting during 1984 Anti-Sikh riots.- External links :#http://www.sacw.net/aii/WhoaretheGuilty.html Who are the...
. Link to report. - Manoj Mitta & H.S. Phoolka. When a Tree Shook Delhi (Roli Books, 2007), ISBN 978-81-7436-598-9.
- Jarnail Singh, 'I Accuse...' (Penguin Books India, 2009), ISBN 978-0-670-08394-7
- Jyoti Grewal, 'Betrayed by the state: the anti-sikh pogrom of 1984' (Penguin Books India, 2007), ISBN 978-0-14-306303-2
External links
- 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots Homepage at Times of India
- 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots: The Causes and The Repercussions
- 1984 riots case records, Government of Delhi
- Misra Commission Report
- Ahooja Committee Report
- witness84.com, Commission - Sikri Report
- Who Are The Guilty?