It may be wrong of me to keep posting these stories, but it is important to know that the carnage against Sikhs in Delhi is not something that can be consigned to History. It is something that happened recently and the both victims and criminals are still alive. It also shows (as in Gujarat and in Mumbai after that) how easily we descend into savagery worse than animals, where a human being ceases to be one. Why ? what happens ? Why would a neighbor kill another ? Is it within us to do this ? Within you or me ? This one is from Aimee :
my uncle was the first sikh who was killed in the riots… he owned a huge business of taxi’s and this is the story i heard from his own family that survived… i must have not been 9… my uncle was dragged out from his house to his taxi stand beaten all the way there… while his young daughter ran after him trying to save him… they hanged him in front of her but did not kill him fully and then burned him alive… imagine seeing your own father die in front of you…. she was left to die at the stand… broken arm leg and god knows what else… I heard of her after 1 yr – she lived and joined the radical Sikh movement… then they ask why and how do we save our children from something like that. ? .. she is dead now.. well that is what i know… no one talks about this in our family… but 1984 case are still going on… so many died in name of caste system… we should not repeat the past and learn to heal those who have been hurt…
That is painful to read.
We treat Ajmal Kasab, and Afzal Guru as Demons. Whatever they have done is condemnable, yet they are responsible for the deaths of 30-40 Indians.
However, the culprits of 1984 were awarded with top government MP positions and are roaming with Black Cat Commandos and everything. They massacred 4000 people in the most gruesome manner.
It really makes me sad to see that innocent people are forced to pick up guns and their families were wiped out by the Goons hired by Congress Party.
As long as culprits of 1984 are alive the memories of 1984 will never die down. It was not a riot but a pre-organised genocide by the ruling party against a minority population of Sikhs.
If I am given a wish, I would ask God to Take India back to the British Rule and make sure that we remain under British Rule for 1000 years.. Atleast, we wont have to see these incidents.
Not even 1 Single Riot took place under British Rule. What an Irony and sad is it that Criminals are holding MP positions under the Democracy.
Can we all work for better world with better humanity, more loving, more caring, more peaceful, more creative …
Sad Sad Sad …
Outcome and its results are …
Many may have no details of what happened 25 years ago maybe weren’t born that time …
Do you know majority of Sikhs in US, Canada talk that Punjab is not part of India or Hindus even today…
When you hear it hurts …
And is a struggle for people who try to join the communities …
This one for AJ
Those who suffered serious damages in 1984 Official Genocide and Terrorism in Punjab shifted to Canada/US and are prospering under Non-Indian Government.
How many of you know that Nehru agreed to create a separate Sikh State in 1947 ??? Still no-one was interested in a separate State.
Khalistan was not the demand of Sikhs. It was the only option imposed on the minority community first by invading their highest spiritual institute ie Harmandir Sahib. Thousands of pilgrims died inside the premises of holy temple. After that killing thousands of innocent people in 1984.
Bhindranwale was created by Indira Gandhi herself, and not anyone else. Also Prabhakaran,LTTE was created by the same lady.
Punjab has suffered in the fire of Terrorism for more than 10 years. Ever wondered why Terrorism came to a sudden halt after the death of Rajiv Gandhi ?
If your brain is not blinded by the paid-media then you will get your answer.
There are two types of Terrorists, 1) Political Terrorists and 2) Simple Terrorists.
It is the political terrorism which pushes innocent people to pick guns and fight for their rights. It is the injustice which forces people to become terrorists and they do not become Terrorists just for Joy.
To Stop Terrorism/Riots/Genocide/Hatred we have to first put an end to Political Terrorism.
Speaking of savagery , any recollection of Kanishka bombing just a few months later? What happened to justice and legal systems in that case? Who were the perpetrators?
Maybe if the victims belonged to a single community , there would be protests, shoe hurling… how does humanity express its anger?
What is disturbing is even today all these stories, recollections are always by distant relatives not the immediate families of the victims. What happened to them? Who provided them with medical, pschological and financial help? Who sheltered the orphaned children, provided livelihood to the widows? No stories on that? Why?
AJ, even gujjus project themselves as non-indians, when asked they reply that they r from canada or australia and the most shocking thing for me was when a gujju told me he is from gujarat and not from india; a recent article from Bharat Jhunjhunwala categorizes indians as:
1.Resident non indians
2.Non resident indians
3.Non resident non indians
4.Resident indians
AJ, even gujjus project themselves as non-indians, when asked they reply that they r from canada or australia and the most shocking thing for me was when a gujju told me he is from gujarat and not from india; a recent article from Bharat Jhunjhunwala categorizes indians as:
1.Resident non indians
2.Non resident indians
3.Non resident non indians
4.Resident indians
Neeti ji: r u asking Mr. Kapur all these questions?!
He is a filmmaker not a journalist.
Coming to Kanishka trial, indian govt did not even try to tackle that case, the canadian supreme court tried to gather evidence for 20 years and finally declared the alleged bombers innocent due to lack of evidence, plz pray that u never become a direct victim coz under such circumstances u can never raise ur voice for justice, just like the widow of martyr cop Swanand Kirkire.
No chakraji, the questions were addressed to myself. Thinking aloud.
Thanks Indian and chakra …
I understand and have felt it … hence i wrote sad, sad, sad …
the pain meeting, traveling …
We have to stand up for the humanity and can’t wait for anyone else to do it for us.
Change :
“We be the change We wish to see in the world”
You walk alone, people will join and walk with you
Hence the request and the prayer
Can we all work for better world with better humanity, more loving, more caring, more peaceful, more creative …
upana http://www.upana.org was a step towards uniting people …
Bay Area Indo American http://www.bayareaindoamerican.com is another step and is moving ahead …
Its strange reading the discussion thread here. Thought I will see some creative or appreciative minds here, but what I see is a bunch largely comprising of bickering minds enclosed in their own cocoons. The origin of this discussion; an article by some journalist and a follow-up piece by Shekhar Kapur seemed more in spirit of reminding us to be better: reminding us that these things have happened in our lifetime and still stand at our doorstep.
Discussion board seems more like we are still in the middle of this mayhem, at least in our heads. Remember the past so that we don’t repeat its mistakes in future, don’t point your finger at other; saying mine is worse than yours.
1984 Sikh Genocide: What are the issues to be decided now? Amnesty International’s T. Kumar said
The issues mentioned in the operative part of the ‘Amnesty International’ report were very relevant to be decided without diluting and manipulating the issues
The demand of international intervention to deliver justice for the Sikh community, considering and deciding the issues mentioned as under, in the operative part of the ‘Amnesty International’ report, was very relevant and must be accepted and decided without diluting and manipulating the issues as early as possible.
Submission by
Balbir Singh Sooch, Advocate, Ludhiana
http://www.sikhvicharmanch.com
‘Those Guilty of November 1984 Sikh Massacre Should Be Punished,’ Says Amnesty International
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS11311+05-Nov-2009+PRN20091105
ISSUES:
“………“Addressing the conference, Amnesty International’s T. Kumar said “We simply want to find out why this deplorable act was committed and ask why it has taken so long for those responsible to be punished. We need to deliver justice for all those Sikhs who suffered in 1984 and their families.”
The conference was created to expose the true extent of killings as a state sponsored act, in contrast to the Indian government’s position which labeled the killings as “Anti-Sikh Riots.”
“The killings, burning, robbing, rape and looting of Sikhs has constantly been termed by the Indian government as ‘reaction’ to the murder of Ms. Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984,” said Sikhs for Justice legal advisor Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
“The truth, however is that the Sikh massacre was planned, organized and targeted at the behest of the ruling political party and with the active support and sometimes connivance of Police and law enforcement authorities.
During the four days of carnage, Sikhs across India were located, identified, targeted and ruthlessly killed by armed and in most cases, hired career criminals and arsonists.
Politicians at the top of Indian government actively instigated, provoked and ordered the killings while police and local administrators either actively participated or stood passively by.”…………”
Balbir ji:
The Chappal & Chidambaram episode only deprived the culprits of MP tickets, to make up for it the congress party gave the tickets to their kin; do u seriously think our govt. will bring them to justice? Amnesty operates from new york, wht we need is a desi version operating in new delhi that can influence or if necessary mandate the govt to deeds.
Reaction; wow! the stench of that word has not subdued even after 25 years; wonder how the living legend Khushwant Singh wud respond to this blog; he protested by returning his Padma Bhushan that year.
as long as power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, we will always have caste wars in our country – there will be no end to it so to think of imagining a time where it won’t happen is being foolish.The baggage we carry regarding caste, religion is too much and I don’t see us unloading it anytime soon.Do you think any of our politicians would be in power if it was not because of these very religion and caste wars? do you think they will ever let it stop?
It happens even today where a party is aggressively pushing its agenda on language to be used on store signs, for taking oath etc; the govt has done nothing.How else will politicians get into power – they do nothing good for the people so they have to unite under one common message and nothing is stronger or passionate than how people feel about their respective religions in India
WITH MALICE TOWARDS ONE AND ALL: Khushwant Singh
November 15, 2009
First Published: 00:37 IST(15/11/2009)
Last Updated: 00:42 IST(15/11/2009)
November: The saddest month of the year
November will go down in our history as the saddest month of the year because of what happened in November 1984. Mrs Gandhi was murdered a day earlier. And hell broke loose on Sikhs who had nothing whatsoever to do with her dastardly murder: upwards of 5,000 were slaughtered across India all the way down to Karnataka. On its heels came the Bhopal gas tragedy in which over a thousand were choked to death and thousands more maimed for life.
Have these tragedies lessons to teach? Yes, they tell us how to avoid their recurrence. First, let us take a closer look at the assassination of Mrs Gandhi. I have good reasons to believe that she was averse to deploying the army to clear the Golden Temple to rid it of Bhindranwale and his goons entrenched in the Akal Takht. She was persuaded to do so by her advisers who evidently knew very little about the Sikhs, their history and what the Golden Temple meant to them. She was assured that the operation would be over in a couple of hours as Bhindranwale would lay down arms as soon as he realised he had to face armoured tanks and aircraft. As it transpired, the battle lasted two nights and days with heavy casualties of life and sacred property. When Mrs Gandhi visited the Temple two days later, she was shocked by the sight. There were dead bodies still floating in the sacred tank and the Akal Takht was in ruins. Mark Tully has rightly described it as “The fatal miscalculation”. Mrs Gandhi herself should have known that her life was in peril.
Another aspect of the tragedy, which is rarely mentioned, is the cowardly silence maintained by leaders of the Sikh community, both Akalis and Congressmen, against the hateful utterances of Bhindranwale against Hindus and his gangsters pulling out Hindus from buses and shooting them. They were scared of losing their lives because Bhindranwale only knew one way of dealing with critics — killing them. I know because I was on his hit list for many years. This created a lot of ill-will against Sikhs and is the main reason why so few came to their help when they were attacked. It has not yet got into the skulls of Sikhs living abroad. Many gurudwaras overseas have Bhindranwale’s photographs on display and speakers refer to him as a martyr.
All that is now history. What remains is to punish those who took part in the anti-Sikh pogrom of 1984. Hundreds have been named by eye-witnesses. Barely 20 have been brought to justice. As I keep repeating ad nauseam, crimes unpunished breed criminals. You can be sure if these criminals are not brought to justice soon, many of those who suffered will take to crime.
About the Bhopal gas tragedy, all I can say is that it was caused by criminal neglect of safety measures. We continue to use sub-standard material in laying roads, building houses and factories. We pay the price for doing so.
Indian, The Bengal famine of 1943 killed 3 MILLION people due to the scorched earth policy followed by the British at the time. And you want British rule back ?
As AJ says “Be the change you want to see.”
And as Aimee realises, people need healing and only love heals.
Rahul Gandhi saying Gujrat roits and 1984 were different. He is being interviews by Arnab Goswami on NDTV and he doesnt feel it is necessary to apologize on behalf of his party because he was not the one who went out killing Sikhs… But he says he was angry.
It sucks to see the culprits move around in government cars with red beacons on top here in Delhi…