Charge Sheet Against The Indian State By The Sikh Nation

[Gurdaspuria E12]

_{I took this from the net some time ago please feel free to update list as it only goes up to 2007 or add stuff thats missing.}

_{Charge Sheet against the Indian State by the Sikh Nation}

_{On the midnight of 14 August 1947, British India was partitioned and Sikhs as a people underwent the trauma and rigours of one of the biggest transfers of population in world history from West Punjab to East Punjab. Thousands of Sikhs were killed and hundreds of women were humiliated. Home and hearth were lost and the economy of the Panjabis was ruined. The Sikhs were made to leave their most cherished and sacred place, Nankana Sahib -the birthplace of Guru Nanak. According to one estimate, the Sikhs lost more than forty percent of their territory and more than six percent of their total population.}

_{On 10th October 1947, a secret circular by the Punjab Governor, Sir Chandu Lal Trivedi, declared that Sikhs are a criminal tribe. The circular addressed to deputy commissioners of Punjab, labeled the Sikhs a criminal tribe, threat to peace and that the activities of Sikhs should be kept under watch.}

_{In the month of February, 1948, right-wing Hindu members of the Jalandhar Municipal Committee officially resolved to adopt the Hindi language as the medium of instruction in schools of the district, to taunt the Sikhs and to decimate the importance of mother tongue Punjabi. In the same year, the Dar Commission submitted its report against the formation of linguistic states.}

_{On 19th February, 1949, Sikh leader and president of the Shiromani Akali Dal, Master Tara Singh was arrested at Narela, under charges similar to sedition in nature disallowing him to participate in a religious ceremony.}

_{On 26 January, 1950, the Constitution of India as framed by the Constituent Assembly was adopted. As the Constitution failed to be truly federal in character and did not give special rights to ethnic peoples and nationalities, the two Sikh members in the Constituent Assembly, Bhupinder Singh Mann and Hukam Singh declared that, “The Sikhs do not accept this constitution. The Sikhs reject this constitution.”}

_{The Government of India enters into a pact with the pseudo-Nirankaris to subvert the separate and distinct entity of the Sikh religion.}

_{In 1951, in the first census in ‘independent’ India, under explicit and implicit orders of the state machinery, Hindi was preferred over Punjabi. The ruling Congress party went to the extent of issuing an advertisement in newspapers asking non-Sikh residents of Punjab to return Hindi (in Devnagari script) as their mother tongue, even though Punjabi had been their mother tongue since ages.}

_{On 4th January, 1952 Mr. Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister of India, opposed the formation of Punjabi Suba. This was in total contrast to the commitment to demarcate India on a linguistic basis made by the Congress party in 1929, 1946 and 1947.}

_{On 4th March, 1953, the Akali-led government of PEPSU province was dismissed without any ground. Upset over the misuse of Article 356 of the Constitution by the Congress government, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, the founding father of the Indian constitution, while speaking in the Upper house of the Indian parliament, roared, “I wish to set fire to such a constitution.” This was the first non-Congress government which was dismissed and President’s rule was imposed.}

_{On 6th April, 1955, a ban was imposed on the raising of the slogan “Punjabi Suba Zindabad”. Subsequently, the police under the command of DIG Ashwani Kumar entered the Darbar Sahib Complex and raided the offices of the Shiromani Akali Dal to detain Akali leaders. The Head priest of Akal Takht Sahib was arrested and tear gas shells were thrown in the perambulation around the Darbar Sahib. The Head pries of Darbar Sahib and Akal Takht Sahib were detained.}

_{In 1957, in continuation of the anti-Punjabi language tirade, a cross-section of Hindu fundamentalists (Jan Sangh) floated Hindi Raksha Samiti under the leadership of Yag Dutt Sharma that launched a violent “Save Hindi Struggle” campaign which comprised of throwing cigarette buts in holy water tanks, tearing of pages of Sikh religious texts and shearing of hair of Sikhs by waylaying them. Discrimination was evident as Hindu hooliganism was not stopped whereas Sikhs were beaten up.}

_{On 15th March, 1959 peaceful protestors of the Shiromani Akali Dal, on their way to the Indian parliament to protest the violation of their rights were detained, harassed, maltreated and arrested.}

_{In 1960, the biggest Morcha for Punjabi Suba was launched. 57,000 Sikhs courted arrest. Master Tara Singh was arrested. In the same year, on June 12, a silent march was taken in Delhi protesting the arrest of Master Tara Singh. For the first time, the Delhi administration ordered that any Sikh entering Delhi or walking the streets of the city should be given a thrashing. Harbans Singh Frontier who led the first Jatha was mercilessly beaten up when he came out of the Gurdwara Sisganj Sahib.}

_{In the sixties, the Indian state patronised and assisted the left movement in Punjab to destroy Sikh culture, Sikh traditions, Sikh religion and Sikh ethos. On 22 May, 1960, 11 Sikhs of Tarna Dal were gunned down at Paonta Sahib, Himachal Pradesh by Mahant Gurdial Singh's henchmen who was entrenched in the Gurdwara with logistical support from police and the district administration.}

_{The Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 was passed, which dealt a death-blow to the territorial and water rights of the people of Punjab. Sections 78, 79 and 80 of the Panjab Reorganisation Act placed the irrigation and hydel-power projects of the Panjab geographically in Himachal Pradesh. These provisions also gave exclusive overall control of these projects to the Central government. It was in total contravention of Article 246 of the Indian constitution and universally accepted riparian principles.}

_{In 1967, the Congress conspired to topple the first Akali-led government by engineering defection and thereafter withdrawing its support, and imposing President’s rule.}

_{In 1970, Sikhs settled in the Terai region of Uttar Pradesh were forcibly evicted from there under one pretext or the other. In recent times, the Sikh-majority district of Udham Singh Nagar was also forcibly attached to the newly carved state of Uttaranchal Pradesh against the express wish of Sikh residents in that area.}

_{In 1971, in a move to scuttle the importance of martial races in the Indian armed forces, the defence ministry under Jagjivan Ram, took a policy decision, to recruit army personnel on the basis of population rather than merit. The percentage of Sikh participation in the Indian Armed Forces was gradually reduced to a meagre 2 percent. Promotions to high-ranking Sikh officers were scuttled on pretext or the other. The government compelled Sikh officers, both in the Defence and Civil services to renounce their Sikh identity (i.e. Kesh and Kirpan) if they desired promotions and possible retention in their services. This illegal and racial discrimination continues.}

_{In 1972, 12 Sikhs were killed by the Punjab police in Gurdwara Sadabart, near Ropar.}

_{In 1973, the Shiromani Akali Dal adopted the Anandpur Sahib Resolution but the Indian state and media launched a vicious campaign against it, dubbing it as anti-national.}

_{Upon the imposition of emergency in 1975, thousands of volunteers of the Shiromani Akali Dal opposing the emergency imposed by Mrs. Indira Gandhi were incarcerated.}

_{On April 13, 1978, thirteen Sikhs were killed in cold-blood by the pseudo-Nirankaris in the heart of Amritsar who had been given permission to voice anti-Sikh sermons in the holy city of Amritsar by the Punjab government. In the same year, 4 Nihang Sikhs were killed at Pundri, Haryana, by police of the Akali Dal supported Haryana Government under the chief ministership of Chaudhary Devi Lal. In the same year Sikh protestors were fired at in Kanpur and Delhi leading to death of some activists.}

_{As the Punjab and Sind Bank was understood to be the banks of Sikhs and Punjabis, when the bank reached the zenith of its glory, in 1980, the bank was nationalized and brought under the direct control of the government of India.}

_{On 14th January 1980, copies of Guru Granth Sahib were burnt at Chando Kalan in Haryana.}

_{On 4th January, 1980 Baba Gurbachan (neo-Nirankari) and 64 associates accused in the case of the murder of 13 Sikhs on April 13, 1978 were acquitted by the Sessions Judge of Karnal, Mr. Gupta. It is an open secret that all attempts were made by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and others to influence the judiciary for their acquittal.}

_{On 1st May 1982, the Dal Khalsa, which was struggling for Sikh rights was banned by the Indian Government. Sometime later, the All India Sikh Students Federation, which was one of the oldest Sikh youth organizations working amongst Sikh students for propagation of Sikh religion was also banned by government of India.}

_{During the Asian games in 1982, Sikhs were banned from entering Delhi. With full tacit approval of the state authorities, Sikhs were badly humiliated at various places in Haryana. Their shops were looted and property destroyed.}

_{On 4th April, 1983, 26 Sikhs were killed by the police, at Kupp, near Malerkotla, during the "Rasta Roke" agitation of the Akali Dal.}

_{In 1983, the State Reserve Police and the Central Reserve Police were directed by the government to attack Gurdwaras on the slightest pretext. During the year, Gurdwara Sahib Sisganj, Delhi, Gurdwara Imli Sahib, Indore, Gurdwara Sahib, Churu, Rajasthan, Gurdwara Sahib Chandokalan, Haryana and Gurdwara Sahib, Chowk Mehta, Amritsar were attacked.}

_{From February 15-20, 1984, the Hindus of Haryana under the guidance of the Chief Minister Bhajan Lal and senior police officials, attacked innocent Sikhs in the cities of Panipat, Rohtak, Kaithal Karnal, Ambala, Jind and other parts of Haryana province and killed 20 Sikhs, burnt six Sikh shrines and looted more than 200 Sikh houses and shops. The hair and beards of many Sikhs were shaved off by the Hindus in the presence of heavy contingents of police and Central Reserve Police.}

_{In June 1984, on the orders of the Prime Minister of India, Mrs. Indira Gandhi, Darbar Sahib and 37 other Gurdwaras were attacked by all sections of the Indian Armed forces and other security agencies, killing thousands of Sikhs, desecrating the holy premises, vandalizing heritage records and artifacts. They not only killed the fighting forces but also innocent Sikh men, women and children.}

_{During the attack on Darbar Sahib, the Sikh Reference Library was vandalized by the Indian Armed Forces and the looted material has not been returned to this day.}

_{After the attack on Darbar Sahib, an internal circular of the Indian Army entitled, Baat Cheet exhorted members of the Indian Armed Forces to earmark baptized Sikhs, all of whom were labeled as dangerous people who were supposed to be having direct links with ‘terrorists’.}

_{In November, 1984, Sikhs were attacked in 87 towns and cities in 'secular' India. According to estimates by human rights organizations atleast 10,000 Sikhs were virtually butchered or burnt alive. Officially, 3,700 Sikhs were killed in a matter of 48 hours. More than 200,000 Sikhs rendered homeless and without work. More than 358 Gurdwaras were desecrated and destroyed. Justifying this official pogrom against the Sikhs against the Sikhs, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi shamelessly proclaimed, “When a big tree falls, the earth shakes.”}

_{On 25 July 1985, the Rajiv-Longowal accord was reached which contained unattainable and unachievable proposals. The Accord was attained under deceit and pressure on Sant Longowal. Still, for the record, no part of the accord has been implemented.}

_{Since 1986, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the International Committee of the Red Cross have been debarred from officially entering Punjab for documenting human rights violations. This ban still continues.}

_{In 1987, the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987 was passed. This act violated all norms of criminal jurisprudence. Every safeguard guaranteed by the Constitution, all international standards of human rights laid-down by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights were violated by this Act, even though India is a signatory to both these declarations. The Sikhs suffered the consequences of TADA. Thousands of Sikh youth were detained, tortured, and killed both in Panjab and in other Indian states.}

_{On 12th May 1987, the Akali government in Punjab was dismissed by misusing Article 356 of the Indian constitution.}

_{On 14-15 September, 1988, Sikh students of the Engineering College at Bidar in Karnataka were subjected to a brutal racial attack in which many students were killed and a large number of them were injured.}

_{In 1988, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi introduced the 59th amendment to the constitution of India, rescinding the right to life of the people of Punjab and enabling more discriminatory laws against Punjab.}

_{On 13th January, 1988, Sikhs were injured and killed in Jammu & Kashmir during the procession to observe the birthday celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh.}

_{On 6th January, 1989, without substantial evidence, Kehar Singh was hanged. The advocates and judges colloquium objected to this judicial murder, but it was still carried out.}

_{A written circular was sent by the Director General of Police, Mr. K. P. S. Gill to all Senior Superintendents of Police in Punjab dated 30 August, 1989, giving details of rewards to them for the apprehension and liquidation of wanted “terrorists/extremists”.}

_{In 1990. Prime Minister V.P. Singh introduced the 65th amendment to the constitution, to prolong Presidential Rule in Panjab. This was repeated in 1991 by Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar when he initiated the 75th Constitutional Amendment.}

_{In 1991, the Bombay police issued a circular to collect details of Sikh residents to cause them harassment and humiliation.}

_{Elections scheduled to be held in June 1991 were aborted only 24 hours prior to polling time by the then President Mr. R. Venketaraman on advice from Prime Minster-designate Mr. P. V. Narasimha Rao. This illegal order was implemented by Chief Election Commissioner, Mr. T.N. Seshan.}

_{On 28 July, 1991, a circular was issued in the Terai region asking Sikh residents to prove their innocence. Police intimidation and restrictions on purchase of property became the norm in this Sikh-majority area of the State of Uttar Pradesh.}

_{In 1991, Brigadier Sinha of the Indian Army publicly declared that the only way to subvert the culture of the Sikhs was to rape and humiliate Sikh women.}

_{On 15 March, 1992, a written discriminatory order was issued by the state government of Rajasthan for registration of land owned by Sikhs.}

_{On 3 April, 1992, former judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and chairman of the Punjab Human Rights Organisation, Justice Ajit Singh Bains was arrested under the anti-people legislation, TADA. Inspite of massive protests by human rights activists, lawyers and political activists, the Punjab and Haryana High Court did not intervene.}

_{On 8-9 June, 1992, five innocent villagers from village Behla, district Amritsar were used as a human shield by the security agencies comprising of the Punjab police and the Central Reserve Police Force in an operation against Sikh insurgents. All were killed and later dubbed as militants.}

_{On 9 October, 1992, Bhai Harjinder Singh Jinda and Bhai Sukhdev Singh were sent to the gallows under the provisions of the TADA act, which was later on held null and void by the Supreme Court of India. It is significant to mention that as many as 400 petitions challenging the validity of T.A.D.A. were pending judgment for more than 8 years in the apex court. The decision though was taken after hanging Jinda and Sukha.}

_{On 1 January, 1993, the former Jathedar of Akal Takht Sahib, Bhai Gurdev Singh Kaonke, who had been kidnapped by the police a few days ago, was tortured and extrajudically killed by the Ludhiana police.}

_{In 1993, 11 Sikh young pilgrims on way by bus to Hazur Saheb, Nanded from Pilibhit were removed from the bus and shot dead in cold blood in front of all other passengers by the police, alleging that they were all “terrorists”.}

_{On 8-9 November, 1994, six Sikh undertrial detenues under TADA, in the Pilibhit prison in the state of Uttar Pradesh were brutally beaten to death by the 42 members of the prison staff with support from the infamous Provincial Armed Constabulary of Uttar Pradesh. 22 other Sikh detenues were seriously injured.}

_{On 6 September, 1995, human rights activist, Jaswant Singh Khalra, who had unearthed gross human rights abuses in the district of Amritsar about individuals who had disappeared involuntarily was tortured and killed extrajudicially.}

_{Mr. Murli Manohar Joshi, Human Resources Minister earmarked 100 crores for the celeberation of 300 years of Khalsa Panth. Most of the money was apportioned to RSS supported organizations for penetrating into Sikh institutions to undermine the separate identity of the Sikhs and diluting Sikh ideology with the motive of evolving pan-Hinduism which propagates the Sikhs to be a sect of Hinduism.}

_{On 20 March 2000, coinciding with the visit of US President, Bill Clinton, 35 young Sikhs were killed in Chittisingpura, Kashmir by state vigilantes. This has been proved without doubt but the state has not taken any action so far.}

_{In June 2005, sedition cases were registered against the leadership of the Dal Khalsa and Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) when they participated in a function to observe the anniversary of the attack on Darbar Sahib.}

_{In the year 2007, while the blasphemous activities of Sirsa dera chief, Gurmeet Ram Rahim have been allowed to continue, in complete violation of legal provisions, sedition charges have been foisted against Sikh leaders. Earlier such false and baseless allegations were foisted against Dal Khalsa leaders.}

_{(This charegsheet was prepared as a result of a seminar organised by the Dal Khalsa.)}