Historiography of the Literature

About 'Blue Star' Operation

          "Blue Star Operation" (June 4, 1984) is a turning point of the history of the Indian sub-continent.  The attack by the Indian army on the holiest of the Sikh shrines as well as Akal Takht (the Throne of the Almighty), which exposed the Congress designs with regards to the non-Hindus, the frail prowess of the so-called mighty Indian army, the butchering of the thousands of the Sikhs, is the most remarkable chapter the world history since capturing of power by Mao Tse Tung in China in 1949. Though twenty years have gone and there is no territorial change in the borders of the Indian sub-continent but all is not well. The sub-continent is crumbling and like the Soviet empire the Indian union may be cut to its original Hindustan size i.e. Uttar Pardesh, Madhya Pardesh, Bihar, part of Haryana, part of Himanchal etc. The rest of the land i.e. the Punjab, Kashmir, Assam, Bengal, Rajputana, Dravid Land and may be Maratha Land may become sovereign lands. Prior to 1989, none would have believed the fall of the Berlin Wall, the freedom of Poland, Hungry, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Romania, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and the rest of the territory occupied by Russia and even Eritrea.

          My subject is however not the future of the sub-continent. I am dealing with the literature produced after the attack of the Indian army on Darbar Sahib on June 4, 1984.

          The first ever document about the Blue Star Operation was White Paper. It was published by the Indian regime to justify its invasion of the Darbar Sahib. This book is mere propaganda.  Except the dates and the names of the persons and the places every thing else is blatant lie. The book details the events prior to the invasion. It reveals that the dialogue with the Sikh leaders continued till the end of May 1984 and still the attack was launched within hours of so-called failure of talks. The truth is that the Indian army had planned this attack several months before it was translated into action. The assistance by the Russian K.G.B. and even some British officials proves that the Indira Gandhi had some thing different in her mind (to quote Dr. Dilgeer "insane mind").  Further, the book says that the attack took place on June 6, whereas it began on June 4 at 4.44 A.M. In fact the Sikh land was sealed on June 3 and the army took positions on the same day. The casualties of the army and the Sikhs have been wrongly stated. The document mentions less that one hundred soldiers killed whereas the number was more than 5000. The book says that 300 Sikhs were killed whereas the number is more than 10000. Not even slight reference has been made to heinous crimes against innocent Sikhs, butchery and inhuman torture and killings and the burning of the shrines, records, archives and the museums of the Sikhs, whereas the whole of the world press recorded it n their papers.

          Oppression in Punjab, with a forward by Chander Shekhar, is a brief but meaningful account of the scene as well of the period immediately following the invasion. It is an impartial account of the carnage and McCarthy style persecution of the innocent Sikhs. The book exposes the claims of the Indian regime and proves the hollowness of the fascist government and its crimes against humanity in contravention of the holy international conventions relating to such events. It is however noteworthy that, later, the same Chander Sheikhar threatened to eliminate thousands of the Sikhs unless the Sikhs did not abandon their claim to sovereignty.

          Who Are The Guilty is a touching story of the holocaust of the Black November 1984. It identifies the criminals responsible for the carnage of the Sikhs. It is shocking that the Hindu regime of Delhi calls it “riots” whereas it was massacre/genocide of the Sikhs. This book is based on the documentary evidence as well as the statements by the eye-witnesses. It exposed the Nazi-type acts of the terrorist rulers. The book mentions the Chief of the police, the ministers like Narsimha Rao, H.K.L.Bhagat, Jagdish Tytler, Arjan Dass, Lalit Makan (son in law of Shankar Dyal Sharma, later, the President of India), Bhajan Lal, Sajjan Kumar are among those who led, collaborated and guided the operations of the inhuman carnage of the Sikhs. Now it is well known that the whole operations had the blessing of Rajiv Gandhi himself. Rajiv, later, justified the carnage. Who Are the Guilty remains the best document about the genocide of the Sikhs. Its parallels is Holocaust, the book which explains the carnage of the Jews by the Nazis during the Second World war.

          The Siege of the Sikhs by Justice Ajit Singh Bains is a rare document with regard to the violation of human rights in the country of the Punjab. It explains the ulterior motives behind the Black Laws promulgated by the Indian regime. The book explains where these Laws violated the fundamental principles of the various Treaties and Conventions of the United Nations. The book is an impartial account of the legal side. The book, however, does not mention that the practice is much different even from the Black Laws. The disappearances of the innocent Sikhs, merciless killings, inhuman torture, unspeakable atrocities perpetrated by the Indian forces against the Sikhs, including women and children, have not been explained in the document; otherwise this would have become the most historic account of inhuman acts. Sane human beings won’t believe the savagery and brutality committed by the ferocious forces of India. The history had never known such heinous crimes against humanity. Still, within the scope of its subject, this book remains the best account of the Black Laws prevalent still in the Sikh Homeland.

          Tragedy of Punjab: Operation Blue Star And After written by Kuldip Nayyar and Khushwant Singh, is a book written with a double mind. The authors know the crime against the Sikhs but they still do not want to displease the rulers. With a low voice they mention some of the crimes and that even with a mild tone. It seems that they want the Sikhs to abandon their claims to sovereignty and self-determination. The reason is the mind of the senior author Kuldip Nayyar, who was born in a Sikh family but later, joined Hinduism (most people believe that he embraced Hinduism to marry the daughter of Bhim Sen Sachar, a Hindu Chief Minister). Kuldip Nayyar’s psyche makes the book as an incomplete and partial account of the situation.  Some scholars consider it as a shrewd propaganda or a work signifying nothing.

          The Punjab Story is a collection of essays written by Khushwant Singh, Amarjit Kaur, Talveen Singh, Shekhar Gupta, Subhash Kirpekar, Jagjit Arora, M.V.Kamath, Sunil Sethi, and Arun Shourie (who is known as an established anti-Sikh writer). All these writers are either anti-Sikh writers or are the supporters of the policies of the Indian regime. The reasons for their pro-regime approach are different but one thing is common that they have disliking for the Sikhs in general. With this intention in mind these articles were written in 1984 and were later published in the form of a book. The authors of these articles give confusing material at various accounts and on several occasions the quotations are mischievously misquoted. It is not because of ignorance it is just because of the ill will with the propagandist writers. Since the Indian regimes White Paper, this was the most partial account of the Sikhs versus India and vice versa. It is worth recording that Amarjit Kaur, a co-author of this book, appeared at Akal Takht Sahib in 1998 and apologized for her writings and accepted the punishment granted from the Takht.

           Amritsar: the last battle if Indira Gandhi by Mark Tully and Satish Jacob of the B.B.C. is an account by two journalists. The account is full of fallacious and incorrect information. One can smell the rat. Mark Tully is known as an "inside man" of the then ruling party hence he was supposed to play the tunes of the regime. This account is one sided and prejudiced account of the Blue Star Operation as well as the Carnage of the Sikhs during Black November 1984. The authors don't hide their anti-Sikh attitude and on occasions they can not conceal their anger against the Sikhs. It is remarkable to know that mark Tully, a British citizen was awarded the Indian award Padam Shri in April 1992, an award given for the first time and for the last time to a foreign journalist. What was the reason for giving this award, the Indian government has never declared but scholars consider the above mentioned book as well as anti-Sikh and anti-Muslim role of such-like ‘employees’ of the B.B.C agency’ in New Delhi as the only criteria for the award.

          Punjab: The Fatal Miscalculation edited by Harji Malik and Patwant Singh consists of articles by Harji Malik, Patwant Singh, R.S.Narula, Rajni Kothari, Hukam Singh, I.K.Gujral, Khushwant Singh, Jagjit Aurora, A.G. Noorani, Dharam Kumar, Madhu Kishwar, Romesh Thapar, M.Ghazali, John Fraser, Dipanker Gupta, and Pran Chopra etc.  These writers belong to three categories: the Yes-men of the Indian regime (Khushwant Singh, Jagjit S. Arora, I.K.Gujral etc.), the Hindus, who are not aggressive still they write as staunch Hindus (Dharam Kumar, Dipanker Gupta, Madhu Kishwar, Romsh Thapar) and the third group of miscellaneous writers, who can not be classed in any category. Thus the role of the book become clear from the approach of the writer. The sycophants like Khushwant and Jagjit Arora have tried to please the fascist regime by justifying the invasion of the Darbar Sahib. They have used some confusing words to disagree with some of the acts done by the regime but on the whole both of them have tried to pay the price of their nomination s to the Upper House of India. Patwant Singh, a shrewd journalist usually plays double role. He has done the same in the above case too.  Similar is the pattern of I.K.Gujral. Dharma Kumar has not been able to hide his disdain for the Sikhs' struggle for regaining of their lost sovereignty. Nevertheless, the articles by Harji Malik, Rajni Kothari, Dipanker Gupta, Romesh Thapar, John Fraser are genuine and non-prejudiced, hence a useful volume.

          Internal And External Threats To Sikhism by Dr. Dharm Singh (Canada) is a collection of essays on different topics written from time to time. Some part of this material relates to the Operation Blue Star. The writer gives a good account of some of the events with causation of the issues. Though the writer has not come up with any analytical evaluation of the Blue Star Operation, yet he has successfully presented the Sikh Case. He nowhere hides that he is writing as a Sikh.

          The Sikhs' Struggle For Sovereignty by Dr. Harjinder Singh Dilgeer (with one chapter, the last one, by Dr Awatar Singh Sekhon) is a detailed account of the Sikhs' struggle for sovereignty. It deals with the concept of nationhood of the Sikhs as well as the loss of their sovereignty. To quote Dr. Darshan Singh, "(this) is a small book in volume, but encyclopedic in nature...Almost all the turning points of Sikh history are well located and well presented. This small book has become all encompassing and thus comprehensive treatment of the subject. Along with history, it distinctively deals with the philosophy, the ideology, the religion, the politics, and above all the psyche of the Sikhs." Though a comprehensive book, it could not attract the attention of the scholars.

          Soft Target by Zuher Kashmiri and Brian McAndrew (Canada) explains with detail the disaster of the Air India plane, which the Indian regime blamed on the part of a group of the Sikhs. The authors have successfully proved that the Indian regime was fully responsible for the same. It exposes the conspiracy of the Indian regime to defame the Sikhs abroad. Though the work relates to an event of 1985 yet it throws light on the background of the Blue Star Operation, its results and conspiracies around the same.

          Unholy Terror by Ian Mulgrew (Canada) is an anti-Sikh work, believed to be written to collaborate the Indian regime. Some even allege that Mulgrew wrote the book at the instance of the Indian Consulate in Canada. Ian Mulgrew's work is aggressive in tone, is full of incorrect, biased and malicious material. It exposes his ignorance of Sikh history, philosophy and polity.  The author frequently uses derogatory language for the Sikhs and even, at some places, gives lectures ‘as if he is an Indian police official’.  This is one of the most un-academic works about the Sikhs. Like W.H.McLeod, the leader of the notorious anti-Sikhism School, he has added to unethical propaganda literature.

          The Sikh Question by Sarfraz Hussain Mirza, Syed Farooq Hasmat and Sohail Mohammed (University of Punjab, Lahore 1985) is a narrative of the background of the events resulting into invasion of the holiest of the Sikh shrine. The authors have consulted several sources available in Pakistan. The authors have done a lot of labor and have produced an impartial work about the subject. However, the authors have a drawback of non-availability of several important sources. The authors did not have access to literature published in the Sikh Homeland and moreover they lack knowledge of Punjabi language leading to incapability to consult the sources published in the language of the Sikh Homeland. Most of the genuine literature and source material about the Sikhs is in Punjabi language and Gurmukhi script. Hence, this makes the scope of the work limited one. Nevertheless, the authors have produced the best out of the material on their tables.

          Blue Star Operation by K.S. Brar who led the attack on the Darbar Sahib and is responsible for the massacre of thousands of innocent Sikh youth, women and children, has produced this malicious book. This is a carbon copy of the Indian government's White Paper and Brar has published this book to cover up the heinous crime committed during the month long genocide of the Sikhs. Almost all the reviews of the book condemned this work as a blatant lie and some of the scholars went on to say to this extent that the book was written by the Indian officials and was published in the name Brar. A similar book ‘Operation Black Thunder’ was written by Sarbjit Singh (Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar in 1987) with an intention to justify the government action.

          Punjab Under Siege by Iqbal Singh is a useful work about the Blue Star Operation. It discusses with detail the issues involved in the situation leading to Sikhs' plight. The author has successfully presented the points relevant to the subject matter of the book. The account is unbiased and his arguments are logical and well built. The author is nowhere imbalanced or partial.

          India Commits Suicide by Dr. Gurdarshan Singh Dhillon is one of the good books written about the Operation Blue Star. To quote Karamjit Singh (Punjabi Tribune), "This book is precious as it contains valuable documents about the present Sikh struggle.... This book will be an eye opener for the Indian politicians because it cautions them of the future of the sub-continent." India Commits Suicide and The Sikhs' Struggle for Sovereignty: An Historical Perspective by Dr. Harjinder Singh Dilgeer are the two most remarkable works about the Sikh situation, its genesis as well as its future and the future of the Indian sub-continent.

          India: Million Mutinies by, is a book of hatred. The reviewers of the book exposed this propaganda work as an act of anger against the Sikhs whom the author seems to detest for reasons best known to him. V.S.Naipal has been given special publicity since this work by the Indian government. Even the Indian readers did not know Naipal before he published this work. The author has presented a lot of information about the events, which never took place including his visit to the Sikh leaders. This makes the work just a malicious piece of propaganda.

           India: The Siege Within by M.J.Akbar is one of the most shocking works about the Sikhs and the Kashmiris. The work seems to be a product of hatred for the Sikhs and the Muslims. Ironically it has been published in the name of a Muslim. The author leaves no opportunity to rebuke, assail, and blame the Sikhs and the Muslims for each and every thing. It is strange that such a biased work has been published by Penguin Books. The book does not deal with any issue seriously. The issues are discussed on propaganda plan. The author speaks not as a scholar but as a leader of the ruling party. The information is distorted, false and several accounts are based on rumors. A serious scholar will consider it nothing more than trash.

          Among the Punjabi publications about the Blue Star Operation Harbir Singh Bhanwar's Diary De Panne was the first. It is daily dairy of a journalist who was actually present near Darbar Sahib and had seen almost every thing with his own eyes. This is a useful document. The book explains with detail the atrocities committed by the angry Hindu soldiers of the Indian army. It also mentions the reaction of the Hindus as well as the Sikhs with regard to events immediately before and after the invasion on Darbar Sahib and the genocide of the innocent Sikhs. Among the Punjabi publications no such work depicting such an important event of the world history does exist. The author has written two more books but none of them is up to he mark but this book is remarkable for the facts and figures and picturesque of the attack and aftermath.

          Khalistan Di Twarikh by Dr. Harjinder Singh Dilgeer (who is author of a large number of books on modern Sikh history) is a detailed document about the Sikhs' struggle for freedom. In the first section the author explains the Sikhs' struggle as the basis of the post-1984 phenomena. The second section deals with detail the invasion and the atrocities, the persecution, the killings and torture and the black laws promulgated by the Indian regime. The sufferings of the Sikh nation have been candidly discussed in this book. This is a useful document for the students and scholars of the history of the Khalistan movement, its genesis and the consequences. With several hundred photographs, the book is of great value for the students of Sikh studies. Due to data given in tis book, it has become a reference book of the history of the 20 years (1978-1988) of the Sikh resurgent movement.

          Dr Harjinder Singh Dilgeer’s second book “Shiromani Akali Dal (1920-2000)” is far better than Khalsitan Di Twarikh as far as the detail of Blue Star Operation and its assessment is concerned. Dr Dilgeer has given objective analysis of the attack on Darbar Sahib. He has quoted one Surjeet Singh Chhadauri, whose assessment is a comprehensive analysis of the militant movement. This is the only book in Punjabi, which does complete justice to the subject as well as the whole Sikh politics of twentieth century. In 2003, Ajmer Singh published Veehvin Sadi Di Sikh Rajniti. This book is not different from Dilgeer’s Shiromani Akali Dal (1920-2000)”. It seems that Ajmer Singh has developed the whole book on the material/analysis of Dr Dilgeer in the above-mentioned book.

          Kio Kito Visah by Narain Singh is another precious book, which traces the causes of the tragedies of 1984 (June and November). This book indicts the Sikh leadership for having trusted the Hindu Congress leadership in 1947. Narain Singh was the manager of Nanakana Sahib before 1947 and has several books and tracts to his contribution. He has revealed several facts, which were unknown to other writers because he (Narain Singh) had close links with severl senior Sikh leaders.

          Ki Khalistan Banega is another work by Harbir Bhanwar. It is a collection of essays by journalist. The author has not dealt the issue with detail, nor is he certain about what he want to say. Still some of the information to which he was a witness is important.

          Dooja Zafarnama by Jaswant S. Kanwal is a collection of letters addressed by the author to the then Indian Prime Ministers. These are in fact essays and not letters (they were never mailed). The author is basically a novelist and does not have command over the political issues. Like a layman he has tried to give his opinions about some of the contemporary issues. Moreover, the whole book is full of contradictions and the author seems to be either confused or he has not the courage to say the truth. The author, however, has been able to mention the abuses of human rights of the Sikhs in the Sikh Homeland.

          Khalistan Di Lor Kiyon by Sirdar Sarup Singh Narang explains with detail the Sikhs' case for right to self-determination. The author has presented figures which explain that the Sikh Homeland was and is being used the usurper India as a colony and the Sikhs, in their own Homeland, are being treated as slaves. The book asserts that the invasion of Darbar Sahib as an act planned to carry the genocide of the Sikhs.  The value of the book lies in the facts and figures and the other rare data but the arguments about the real issues of the Sikhs struggle are not very convincing. 

          Dahishatgardi Dian Jarhan Kithe Han by Satpal Dang, an official of the Communist party (loyal to Indira Gandhi) is another angry book written with a purpose to defame the Sikhs and their struggle. The book discusses the reasons for the disturbances in the Sikh Homeland. The author does not present any logic but indulges in false propaganda and rumor-mongering. The facts and figures presented by the author are incorrect, false and some of the figures have even concocted by the writer.  The writer has written account of the background and personality of some of the Sikh leaders as well. The facts presented by him are lop-sided and the whole seems to be a angry propaganda. Among the anti-Sikh works written about the Sikhs struggle it is the most notorious and besides, it is a sub standard work.

          Besides these books some Urdu publications have also come up. The most important to mention are two Pakistani publications Khalistan Maazi Ka Khwab MustakilKi Haqiqat by Tariq Ismail Sagar and Bharat Wich Sikh Qaumi Tehriq by Mohammed Jahangir Tamimi. Both the books are written with good intentions but both the books are based on insufficient sources.

          Besides the literature discussed above, several books discuss the events of the Blue Star Operations. Even in some reference volumes the reference can be found with regard to the invasion of the Darbar Sahib and the Akal Takht Sahib. The entries written by the anti-Sikh school are propaganda material. The Anti-Sikhism School consists of W. H. McLeod, J. S. Grewal, Harjot Oberoi, Surjit Hans, Pishaura Singh, and Gurinder Mann etc. Among the western scholars, who have written about the Sikhs and Sikhism, the only impartial writer is Professor Noel Q. King. The rest of the writers have presented lop-sided/partial/prejudiced material. The reasons are best known to them, at least not a subject of this paper.