1984 - Delhi Massacre

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh

Stil haven't fully recovered from my illness at the moment but as promised i will write about the Delhi genocide of the Sikhs.

A Singh had his Dastaar (turban) removed,
look how the police officer just watches on in the background!

On the 31st of October 1984, was the end of an era. Beant Singh and Satwant Singh had taken the courage and showed what true lions of the Khalsa Panth do when they assassinated the tyrant Indira Gandhi. They took revenge for the innocent Sikh men, women, children and the freedom fighters of the Khalistani movement who were killed during Operation Bluestar - Attack on Sri Harimandir Sahib (Golden Temple) complex. In the eyes of the Sikh nation, they had become heroes, in the eyes of the Hindu community which makes up most of the population in India they thought the opposite. The assassination of Indira Gandhi had sparked a national outcry for the blood of Sikhs. People such as your precious Amitabh Bhachan were urging people to kill Sikhs saying and i quote ' Blood for blood'. Sikh men suffered torture from all kinds of people, Police and mobs alike. They would remove turbans of the Sikh men and go on to kill them. Shops which were owned by Sikhs would be looted and set alight. Houses with Sikh residents would also be looted and set alight. Many thousands of Sikhs who survived the massacre had nothing left. Women who were left widowed where and what were they supposed to live on? We had lost an entire generation of the Sikh faith!

A young Sikh boy being burned alive by the Hindu mob,
how can you justify such actions?

During the days of the violence, many innocent Sikhs were killed. It is estimated that around 50,000 Sikhs were killed during the Dehli massacre! We lost an entire generation. Sikh men and boys were killed instantly in front of their wives, sisters and daughters in ways unthinkable. They would butcher the bodies of Sikh men and boys, they would burn them alive. The women of the Sikh faith would endure countless acts of rape, torture and even death itself. Sikh youth as young as 18 months were killed just because of the faith that they follow. How can the 'largest democracy in the world' allow this to happen? They were themselves in on the massacre with police refusing to help the Sikhs who were looking for someone to protect them, instead the police were bystanders to this, some even joined in on the killing of the Sikhs.

Listed below is a brief timeline of what occured during those days of the massacre.

 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 Sciences (AIIMS).
• 10:50 am: Indira Gandhi dies.
• 11:00 am: All India Radio listeners learn that the two security guards who shot Indira Gandhi were Sikhs.
• 4:00 pm: Rajiv Gandhi returns from West Bengal and reaches AIIMS. Stray incidents of attacks in and around that area.
• 5:30 pm: The motorcade of President Zail Singh, 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 Jethmalani, 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 Gurdwaras, the holy temples of Sikhs, possibly to prevent Sikhs from collecting there and putting up a combined defence.

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.

Here is a 10 minute video which i urge you all to watch, to gain a real understanding of the genocide.

28 years and the Sikhs still have no justice for those actions! This massacre was Hitler-esque, it was a genocide of the Sikh nation. May those who lost their lives in 1984 rest in peace, they are with Waheguru (God) now! But a question for the indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh.  A genocide has been committed towards the Sikh nation, You yourself are a Sikh, 28 years still no justice, Why are you not doing anything to put the people responsible behind bars? Your quick to put Bhai Balwant Singh Rajoana on death row for killing a tyrant yet you turn a blind eye to the actions of the genocide carried out in 84, knowing who the culprits are, then you release them to walk the streets once more, and not bringing peace to those who suffered. Then you wonder why we have lost faith in the judicial system in India, saying that we were always secluded and treated differently to everybody else in India. 1984 - NEVER FORGIVE, NEVER FORGET!!

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh

Vikramjit Singh Dosanjh