insaaf singh

Manmohan Singh, along with parkash badal, KP Gill and others is only a Sikh in name. These naqli Sikhs are more dangerous than the RSS and Congress goondas out to get Sikhs. Manmohan should be declared a tankhaiya for protecting Tytler.

At least 4 things can be done to help the victims of the state sponsored genocide: 1. Volunteer work 2. Financial help www.nishkam.org is doing a great job and if they can get financial/physical help then there is nothing like it. 3. Create awareness amongst other Sikhs and expose what India has done. This will keep the crimes of 1984-1992 fresh in the minds of Sikhs all over the world. 4. Lobby/write to your senator/representative/other officials to have an international inquiry regarding India's crimes against Sikhs and other minorities. International pressure does change things, but unfortunately not enough has been exerted on India.

source: http://www.sachproductions.org/ The Widow Colony accesses the living conditions of the widows and the orphans, of the Delhi Pogroms of 1984, where thousands of Sikhs were brutally murdered with the help of the Government. The interviews with the widows reveal that even though they have learned to continue on with their livelihood, a large part of their psyche remains trapped in 1984. With their families torn and traumatized these widows and children live in a segregated ghetto of New Delhi, Tilak Vihar. They have been fighting for justice for 20 years and now their children fight with the problem of drugs and unemployment. The perpetrators of these crimes remain free, the victims remain forgotten Note: you will need real player to play these video files. For High Bandwidth users: http://www.sachproductions.org/WidowColony_Stream.ram For Low Bandwidth users: http://www.sachproductions.org/media/WidowColonylite.ram

www.sachproductions.org Unheard Voices of Punjab talks about the Human Rights violations against the Sikhs of Punjab. This documentary covers the lives of the victims of State sponsored terrorism. Political leaders, activists and victims talk about their personal experience with the authorities and tell us about their bleak view of the future. The documentary, forces the viewer to realize that the voices of thousands of relatives of disappeared Sikhs, still remain unheard. Their wounds still remain unhealed. For High Bandwidth users www.sachproductions.org/UnheardVoices_Stream.ram For Low Bandwidth users www.sachproductions.org/UnhearVoicesofPunjablite.ram

A lot of Indian apologists argue that the Congress(I) has had an anti-Sikh policy but the general Hindu population respects and loves the Sikhs. Operation Bluestar,Operation Woodrose, November 1984, police brtuality in Punjab and the systematic killing of the Sikh youth in Punjab, is all the work of the Congress(I) and the Nehru dynasty. And the Hindus have just been duped into following the gruesome agenda of the Congress (I). Is this really the case? A new report released by a human rights organization, Ensaaf (http://www.ensaaf.org/body-1984report.pdf)gives evidence that points to the contrary. It discusses the role of the Indian police force, media, public and the Congress Party in the November 1984 massacre. Chapter 5 of the report is very disturbing because it describes in detail role of the Indian electorate in supporting the killing of Sikhs. Some of the highlights below: ************************************************** Prakash Kaur a Punjabi Teacher at Delhi university described how children threw rotten food into her courtyard after the massacre and her colleagues at work joked about the Sikh massacre saying "These people should be grabbed by their judis, whirled around, and beaten up thoroughly" "What is a Sikh Kebaab? A burnt Sikh." Papers in 15 languages in India carried advertisements showing barbed wire and asking "Will the border move to your doorstep" and "Why should you feel uncomfortable riding in a taxi driven by a taxi driver who belongs to a different state?" Instead of condemning the massacre the Indian population supported it...according to a person interveiwed by the reporter Dhiren Bhagat, "Go to the villages and they are saying 'aur kyo on nahin maara Sikhon ko' (Why did they not kill more Sikhs?)...people will say 'acha kiya Congress nay' (Congress did well) A poll done by Illustrated Weekly during Nov 20 to Nov 25 indicated that 72% of people in the Hindu heartland felt that because of Indira gandhi's assasination Congress had improved its chances of winning re-election. 70% to 80% of those polled praised the Congress leadership. On Dec 27 1984, after the shortest campaign in India's history, the Congress won 401 out of 508 seats in India's history. Lalit Maken got 60% of the votes in South Delhi. HKL Bhagat got 386,150 votes and his closest contender got only 73,970 votes. Jagdish Tytler got twice as many votes as his nearest opponent Madan Lal Khurana. **************************************************

Please see Other Sikhs volume 1 by H. Banerjee. It discusses some of the indigenous Sikh communities in Bengal and Eastern India.

A lot of Indian apologists argue that the Congress(I) has had an anti-Sikh policy but the general Hindu population respects and loves the Sikhs. Operation Bluestar,Operation Woodrose, November 1984, police brtuality in Punjab and the systematic killing of the Sikh youth in Punjab, is all the work of the Congress(I) and the Nehru dynasty. And the Hindus have just been duped into following the gruesome agenda of the Congress (I). Is this really the case? A new report released by a human rights organization, Ensaaf (http://www.ensaaf.org/body-1984report.pdf)gives evidence that points to the contrary. It discusses the role of the Indian police force, media, public and the Congress Party in the November 1984 massacre. Chapter 5 of the report is very disturbing because it describes in detail role of the Indian electorate in supporting the killing of Sikhs. Some of the highlights below: ************************************************** Prakash Kaur a Punjabi Teacher at Delhi university described how children threw rotten food into her courtyard after the massacre and her colleagues at work joked about the Sikh massacre saying "These people should be grabbed by their judis, whirled around, and beaten up thoroughly" "What is a Sikh Kebaab? A burnt Sikh." Papers in 15 languages in India carried advertisements showing barbed wire and asking "Will the border move to your doorstep" and "Why should you feel uncomfortable riding in a taxi driven by a taxi driver who belongs to a different state?" Instead of condemning the massacre the Indian population supported it...according to a person interveiwed by the reporter Dhiren Bhagat, "Go to the villages and they are saying 'aur kyoon nahin maara Sikhon ko' (Why did they not kill more Sikhs?)...people will say 'acha kiya Congress nay' (Congress did well) A poll done by Illustrated Weekly during Nov 20 to Nov 25 indicated that 72% of people in the Hindu heartland felt that because of Indira gandhi's assasination Congress had improved its chances of winning re-election. 70% to 80% of those polled praised the Congress leadership. On Dec 27 1984, after the shortest campaign in India's history, the Congress won 401 out of 508 seats in India's history. Lalit Maken got 60% of the votes in South Delhi. HKL Bhagat got 386,150 votes and his closest contender got only 73,970 votes. Jagdish Tytler got twice as many votes as his nearest opponent Madan Lal Khurana. **************************************************

No one mentioned Kabir Bedi in Octopussy. I think this is probably the most famous image of Sikhs that was ever put on TV outside of India. Sikhs are also shown in a Japanese classic called The Burmese Harp. The movie shows a Sikh regiment fighting the Japanese during WWII. Fortunately the Japanese have more sense than the losers who make Bollywood and show Sikhs with dignity and respect. You can also find Sikh soldiers some very old American movies about Hong Kong pre WWII. And Seven Years in Tibet showed Sikh soldiers as well. In some Persian dramas and movies about the British occupation of Persia, you can find Sikh soldiers as well. World cinema probably knows about Sikhs through an occasional portrayal of a Sikh soldier in WWII or as a soldier for the British empire. Pakistani Punjabi films(which are probably even worse than Indian Punjabi films) like to portray Sikhs in their movies every now and then. The Sikhs are shown either as cruel and heartless arch-villains or as noble but misguided heroes. I don't think Sikhs have been portrayed too many times in international cinema otherwise. I have yet to see a Sikh in a Spanish, Latin American, Russian, German, French, African or Italian movie.

There are Sikhs in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and now once again in Central Asia. Most of the Sikhs in this part of the world are Khatri, Arora, and Lobana merchants who had migrated from Punjab and settled in these areas. These Sikhs often worked as moneylenders, shopkeepers, transporters of cotton, and bankers in these parts. Since around the the 1500 South Asian businessmen have been going to NWFP, Afghanistan, Central Asia, Iran, Azerbijan, and even Russia to make fortunes. These merchants were usually Sindhis (from hyderabad and shikarpur) Punjabis (from Multan), Pashtuns, and Marwaris. These merchants belonged to the Baniya, Arora, Khatri, Lohana, Powar, and other trading castes. They brought cotton, silk, and some handicraft goods from India in return for gold, silver, fruits, and other goods. Gradually they became acquainted with these regions and in some cases they settled down and set up businesses. The Sindhis were non-Khalsa Sikhs while the Khatris and the Aroras were Khalsa Sikhs. They remained in Central Asia and left before the Russian revolution. Now after the fall of the USSR, many Sikhs from Iran and Afghanistan, and some from India have gone to Central Asia again. The Sikhs in Afghanistan and Iran are generally of Punjabi descent though there may have been some converts and intermarriages from Islam into Sikhism as well. I read somewhere that the Sikhs of Afghanistan do not give their daughters to Hindus in marriage but will accept Hindu daughters in marriage. The Sikhs of Afghanistan have played an extremely important role in the country's economy and are amongst its leading merchant class. Some of the Pakistani Sikhs belong to a community that di d not leave the NWFP during partition because the local Pashtuns granted them status of a protected community. The Pakistani Sikh community has grown because many Sikhs from Afghanistan have migrated to Pakistan and some Pakistani Hindus have converted to Sikhism because Sikhs have a much better status than Hindus do in Pakistan. It would be hard to guess the exact number of Sikhs in these regions. I have heard estimates in Pakistan to be between 10,000 to 60,000. In Afghanistan from 2,500 to 40,000. In Iran from 2,000 to 10,000. And in Central Asia there are several hundred Sikhs in a community that will grow. These numbers do not include Nanakpanthi Sindhis or Punjabi Hindus.

This dinosaur Badal has betrayed an entire generation of Sikhs. His dubious relationship with the Nirankaris, his craveness during Bluestar, his inability to properly investigate human rights violations, attack on the integrity on the Akal Takhat and now this comment should let everyone know that he is undermining the Paanth. And he is grooming his lackluster son to take over after daddy's death. The majority of the Sikh voters in Punjab are busy being "moderate" and the radical Sikh groups like the Dal Khalsa and Simranjit Singh Maan's akalis are too small and fragmented to challenge Badal's monopoly on power. For now, Badal's nefarious policies are here to stay.

There were not Sikhs killing Sikhs in Nov. 84. The criminals with the name Singh are Biharis, Rajputs, Jaats, Gujjars and other groups. Most of these groups (especially the Arya Samaji Jaats) are quite prejudiced against Sikhs and got their chance in Nov. 84. Sikhs, regardless of affiliation or rank were killed. Even a Congressi traitors like Giani Zail Singh had his car stoned by mobs. Unfortunately, the Sikhs of Delhi didn't learn too much from this, since they voted in the very people who killed them and started giving siropas to killers. The 'Sikh leadership' in Delhi have proven themselves to be slaves. Our own Sikhs have betrayed us in Delhi.

From "Who are the Guilty?" by PUCL. 1. HKL Bhagat-Minister of Information: released criminals from Shahdara Thana to kill Sikhs Said 'sher pinjaraye se nikal diya' 2. Babu Ram Sharma- right hand man of Bhagat: Led mobs on a motor-cycle with a megaphone. 3. Sajjan Kumar- Congress MP, now an MP again under Manmohan Singh's govt. : paid rs.100 and a bottle of liquor to each person involved in killing Sikhs 4. Lalit Makan- Now DEAD thanks to Kharkoo Ranjit Singh Gill- Congress Trade Union Leader: Gave rs. 100 and a bottle of liquor to killers, guided mobs while driving his car. 5. Dharam Das Shastri- Congress MP: Carried voters lists with him to identify Sikh houses; had criminals released as well 6. Jagdish Tytler, the man India's first "Sikh" PM made into a cabinet minister was Congress MP at the time: was instrumental in getting men released to kill Sikhs 7. Mahendra- right hand man of Dharam Das Shastri 8. Mangat Ram Singal: another right hand man of Dharam Das Shastri 9. Dr. Ashok Kumar: led mobs 10. Sukhan Lal Sood-Congress councillor: Provided petrol and addresses of Sikh homes to mobs. He later tried to cover up his actions by giving sweets to the victims. 11. Jagdish Chander Tokas-Congress I worker: led mobs 12. Ishwar Singh-Congress worker: led mobs in Sajjan Kumar's areas 13. Balwant Khokhar- Youth Congress (I) leader: instigated killing and looting 14. Faiz Mohammad- Youth Congress(I) leader: led mobs 15. Ratan- Youth Congress (I) leader: took part in violence and looting 16. Satbir Singh- Youth Congress (I) leader: brought bus-loads of mobsters to Guru Harkrishan Public school, they burnt school buses and parts of the school, he was involved in the looting and beating of Sikhs on the night of November 1 Others involved: Rampal Saroj: Congress (I) worker, killed Gopal Singh, Ranjha Singh, Mekal Singh. Instigated mobs, raped Sikh women and burnt property. Hari Ram Bhatti, police officer: Disarmed Sikhs in Sultanpuri. Killed Sikhs and had them shaven at gun-point. Nur Jahan: Incited Muslims by spreading rumors that Sikhs were burning mosques. Narendar Singh- Congress (I) worker Salim Quereshi- Congress (I) worker Shawkeen- Congress (I) worker Malaram- Congress (I) worker Dogra of Shakarpur: Congress (I) worker Bhatia of Shakarpur: Congress (I) worker Partap, pardhan of Sagarpur: killed 22 members of the family of Budh Singh near Janakpuri On page 14 the study says "the hindu public by and large appeared to be in a mood that sanctioned such assualts" and "people stood on thier rooftops watching our houses burning, just as they do when observing Republic Day parade." And now in 2004, NOT A SINGLE ONE OF THESE KILLERS IS IN JAIL. Sikhs are now 'reconciling' their differences with Congress, voting these killers back to parliament, shouting "<admin-profanity filter activated>" and giving siropas to these killers. We should hand our heads in shame.

From "Who are the Guilty?" by PUCL. 1. HKL Bhagat-Minister of Information: released criminals from Shahdara Thana to kill Sikhs Said 'sher pinjaraye se nikal diya' 2. Babu Ram Sharma- right hand man of Bhagat: Led mobs on a motor-cycle with a megaphone. 3. Sajjan Kumar- Congress MP, now an MP again under Manmohan Singh's govt. : paid rs.100 and a bottle of liquor to each person involved in killing Sikhs 4. Lalit Makan- Now DEAD thanks to Kharkoo Ranjit Singh Gill- Congress Trade Union Leader: Gave rs. 100 and a bottle of liquor to killers, guided mobs while driving his car. 5. Dharam Das Shastri- Congress MP: Carried voters lists with him to identify Sikh houses; had criminals released as well 6. Jagdish Tytler, the man India's first "Sikh" PM made into a cabinet minister was Congress MP at the time: was instrumental in getting men released to kill Sikhs 7. Mahendra- right hand man of Dharam Das Shastri 8. Mangat Ram Singal: another right hand man of Dharam Das Shastri 9. Dr. Ashok Kumar: led mobs 10. Sukhan Lal Sood-Congress councillor: Provided petrol and addresses of Sikh homes to mobs. He later tried to cover up his actions by giving sweets to the victims. 11. Jagdish Chander Tokas-Congress I worker: led mobs 12. Ishwar Singh-Congress worker: led mobs in Sajjan Kumar's areas 13. Balwant Khokhar- Youth Congress (I) leader: instigated killing and looting 14. Faiz Mohammad- Youth Congress(I) leader: led mobs 15. Ratan- Youth Congress (I) leader: took part in violence and looting 16. Satbir Singh- Youth Congress (I) leader: brought bus-loads of mobsters to Guru Harkrishan Public school, they burnt school buses and par ts of the school, he was involved in the looting and beating of Sikhs on the night of November 1 Others involved: Rampal Saroj: Congress (I) worker, killed Gopal Singh, Ranjha Singh, Mekal Singh. Instigated mobs, raped Sikh women and burnt property. Hari Ram Bhatti, police officer: Disarmed Sikhs in Sultanpuri. Killed Sikhs and had them shaven at gun-point. Nur Jahan: Incited Muslims by spreading rumors that Sikhs were burning mosques. Narendar Singh- Congress (I) worker Salim Quereshi- Congress (I) worker Shawkeen- Congress (I) worker Malaram- Congress (I) worker Dogra of Shakarpur: Congress (I) worker Bhatia of Shakarpur: Congress (I) worker Partap, pardhan of Sagarpur: killed 22 members of the family of Budh Singh near Janakpuri On page 14 the study says "the hindu public by and large appeared to be in a mood that sanctioned such assualts" and "people stood on thier rooftops watching our houses burning, just as they do when observing Republic Day parade." And now in 2004, NOT A SINGLE ONE OF THESE KILLERS IS IN JAIL. Sikhs are now 'reconciling' their differences with Congress, voting these killers back to parliament, shouting "<admin-profanity filter activated>" and giving siropas to these killers. We should hand our heads in shame.

"True Singhs in 1984 : SER JAAWE TAAN JAAWE MERA SIKHI SIDAK NA JAAWE Fake Sikhs in 2004 : SIKHI JAAWE TAAN JAAWE, PAR KURSI TE RUPAIYYA NA JAAWE" There were plenty of these fake Sikhs in 1984 as well. Badal and Tohra betrayted Bhindrawale and survived in 1984. If they had any Anakh they would have died fighting, but they were only interested in their kursis. Why we keep electing such traitors is beyond me...I don't know what people think about Simranjit Singh Maan, but he has been vocal about the Sikh cause...and this time in 2004 he lost the elections. And the Panthic Morcha will probably not beat the Akali Dal (Badal) in the SGPC elections. The Indian propaganda machinery and our own apathy has led to the alienation and weakening of radical Sikh elements like SS Maan, Dal Khalsa, and others. Sikh politics is not the blind leading the blind, but backstabbing Benedict Arnolds leading the blind. As far as Mr. Sarna condemning Mr. Chandok, thats just petty politics. Chandok will come out of this the same way his mentor and former friend, Giani Zail Singh did, unashamed and continuing to betray the Sikhs. Did Giani Zail Singh learn anything after Bluestar? Nothing. This ghulam Chandok has learnt nothing and will learn nothing. He will backstab and humiliate the Sikhs again if he gets a chance. A snake may shed its skin but it remains a snake, and a Sikh 'leader' may apologize but he (or it may be more appropriate) remains scum.

Its about time the Akal Takhat took action. This Chandok clown has humiliated Sikhs around the world by giving a siropa and a kirpan to Jagdish Tytler. The DSGMC also decided to support the Congress Party and thus shifted the Sikh vote to the Congress Party in this years elections. As a result we got Sikh-killers like Sajjan Kumar and Tytler elected with the help of Sikh votes. As much as I am personally disgusted by Mr. Chandok and his actions, what is disturbing is the 'slave mentality' that the Sikhs in India, especially the Delhi Sikhs have adopted. There should be an outrage over Tytler's induction into Manmohan Singh's cabinet and the siropa he got. But instead we get a deafening silence. How many Sikhs in Delhi have taken to the streets about this? How many Akalis have openly condemned Mr. Chandok? This man is the 2nd in command in the DSGMC, and instead of holding running holy gurudwaras like Sis Ganj etc., he should be either behind bars or ostracized by the entire Sikh community.

There were cases of Sikhs defending themselves. On the first day of the 'riots' the Sikhs resisted in some parts of Delhi and beat the mobs back. But the Delhi police systematically disarmed any Sikhs who were resisting mob violence and often arrested Sikhs who fought in self-defence. One policeman in Delhi was actually given some kind of award for shooting a Sikh down from his roof, merely because the Sikh was resisting the mobs. If I can find that article, I will post it here. The Sikhs did try to defend themselves where they could, but the Delhi police disamred and arrested any form of Sikh resistence. Sikh policemen and armymen in Delhi were confined to their barracks or taken off duty and could do nothing to protect their bretheren. BTW I put the term riots in quotation marks because a riot is seen an something random and sporadic. What took place in Delhi agains the Sikhs was not a random outburst of public violence (though the Hindu public condoned and supported this violence and continues to elect the killers) but instead a well organized and systematic carnage. The words pogrom, carnage, butchery,qatl-e-aam, or ghullughara are more appropriate than the term riots. BTW please sign the online petition for a UN investigation into Nov 1984, if you haven't done so already http://www.petitiononline.com/sikh1699/petition.html

1984: India’s Unatoned Sin B.S. Mahal* At a premier of “Schindler’s List", at Frankfurt, Germany, Director-Producer Steven Spielberg cautioned that we cannot make good the present and the future “until we make peace with our past”. If let to fester the historic hurts and humiliation of a people can become a burden of history. Euphoric over his electoral victory in Delhi, Chief Minister Madan Lal Khurana vowed to punish the perpetrators of the 1984 anti-Sikh carnage. No matter how good his intentions, he has a fat chance of collaring the guilty! His is a government within a government, jocularly labelled as “C-grade", meaning “all frills and no power”. Real power rests with the Center. And the Center remains monopolised by the Congress(I), wherein are sheltered some of the known thugs. Loyalties have, therefore, spun apart into their constituent tribal lines. Thus, atonement for the sins of November 1984 is stuck in platitudes. The bestiality of 1984 continues to haunt the Sikh collectivety. The images of the savagery are as fresh today as were a decade ago. They are a picture “rewind", and played a thousand times in the mind’s eye. A picture so gruesome and bloodcurdling as to be “D” rated, “D” as in demonolatry. A viewer may randomly select one excerpt or another to make a telling point; but, whichever the excerpt, it is a mere variation on the theme of Cain’s vengeance. Picture this excerpt. In the thick of night, armed with staves, axes, and steel pipes, some carrying kerosene cans, some carrying fiery torches, and fueled by alcohol, a raging mob swarms through the narrow streets of Trilokpuri, one of Delhi’s bedroom communiti es. At the head of the crowd run amuck, is a well known politician. He is a ranking member of the ruling Congress(I). His one hand clutches a list which the villain intends to use to finger Sikh homes, target of their furore. As the rogue politician points to a portal, a small squad splits up from the mob to storm the marked house, the rest of the swarm moves forward onto the damned portal and then the next, till all Sikh homes are brought to account. From each Sikh household, in a bizarre division of tasks, the howling band drags the male members out into the dark dingy lane, ransack the house for loot and gang-rape the women folk. Outside in the dimly lit lane, the elder Sikh male is beaten and wrestled to the ground, his turban partially undone. Someone places an old tyre around his neck, another fills it with kerosene and sets it on fire. The torched man screams and tries to free himself from the scorching necklace but the mob hit him on his arms, hands and legs with staves to keep him in yoke. Soon the flames engulf the man and helplessly he crumbles to the ground, writhing in pain, his screams fading into an eerie moan as life ebbs away. Soon the manly man lies as a heap of ash. The man’s adolescent son is made to watch the staged immolation of his father. Suddenly, a youngman, glassy eyed, in a karate-like move, lunges forward to plunge a piece of iron-pipe through the boy’s torso. Blood cascades out of the gaping hole in the chest. Simultaneously, another provocator, swirls around like a mad dervish and torches the house. Flames leap into the sky. The heart-wounding crying and wailing fill the hamlet. Pungent smell of burning flesh assails the nostrils. As the howls of the mob fades into the distance, they leave in their wake death and destruction. The butchery goes on, day after day, from one city-site to another township. Cries of “teach the Sikhs a lesson” reverberate everywhere. Soon most of the major cities of northern India were a saturnalia of blood. Neither the police nor t he political leadership even made the slightest pretense to shield the sufferers of the pogrom. It was as if the authorities wanted to let the thugs have their way. Some policemen even acted as forerunners sweeping clean Sikh homes of all weaponry to make them an easy prey. Thus unfolded November 1984. This slaughter of the innocents was the price exacted for the slaying of Mrs Gandhi by her Sikh guards. As the world watched the mayhem, the “spin doctors” were busy concocting alibis to blot out the sins of the government. That the anti-Sikh rioting reflected “spontaneous” outpouring of rage, triggered by the assassination, was the oft-repeated excuse. Reality defied that poor excuse. For example, the rioting erupted in an instant following the announcement of the assassination; overnight bus-loads of instigators were trucked in and unloaded at strategic Sikh settlements; countless of the rioters carried, by design, paraphernalia such as staves, iron pipes, kerosene cans and old tyres; and the savagery went on for days unabated and unchecked. All sorts of enquiries were launched, ostensibly to ferret out those responsible for the carnage. Despite the naming of political bigwigs, by victims, bystanders and news-video, no one has been brought to book. Closed door hearings with limited terms of reference, an unsympathetic police and an absence of impartial jurists, added up to make a mockery of the proceedings. The findings were a fait accompli, only the process had to be made to run its course. The law enforcement agencies fared no better. Their top officials were engaged in an exercise of self-sanitization. The rank and file circled the wagons to protect their own. However, the police could not just sit idly by. They, too, had to give the appearance of searching for the facts. Their half-hearted attempts to collar one or two echelon figures failed, or backfired. Thus, the make-believe court of enquiry and the foot-dragging by the police incensed the Sikhs. As the farce went on, many Sikh boy s lost heart. A few hot-heads took the law into their own hands and gunned down Lalit Maken, a prominent trade unionist, who was seen as an accomplice in crime. This was the defining moment. From now on, guilty or not, an impenetrable security blanket was thrown over all those implicated in the 1984 riots. In an ironic turn of events, those who ought to be under legal scrutiny are instead shielded by police protection. The mere acceptance of police protection is seen by some as an admission of guilt. But, to the accused the very fact that they are protected by police attests to their innocence. The accused continue to live a privileged life. For example, Sajjan Kumar, Jagdish Tytler, H.K.L. Bhagat and D.D. Shastri hold, or have held, cabinet level posts at the Center. The only noteworthy police action involved the attempt to arrest Sajjan Kumar. But, on coming to know in advance the imminent arrest of their patron, his supporters ringed his house to form a protective cover to keep the police at bay. That was the end of that police action. Matters were no different in the political arena. For example, fearing a Sikh backlash in the 1991 national elections, if he were to be the candidate from the Karol Bagh riding of Delhi, Dharam Das Shastri, another alleged culprit, was asked by Congress(I) party bosses to withdraw his nomination. In an interview to “The Statesman", a recalcitrant Shastri hinted that if forced to resign he will name names of those responsible, going so far as to say that his testimony can “push” Rajiv Gandhi into “the mud” and “to banish him for 14 years”. No one has followed up on the covert accusation. Perhaps because to do so will rock the boat. That the circle of complicity extends far beyond the foot soldiers is in no doubt. Which explains why the veil of secrecy continues to be drawn over Nov. ’84 rioting. The most striking and appalling feature of the communal clashes was the Hindu on Sikh violence, a first of its kind. But, the events of Nov ’84 are no Chinese puzzle. A closer look at the anatomy of the carnage reveals three distinct phases: planning, execution and connodation. Skeptics will question the planning aspect, making it appear as far-fetched. But, to plan is to foresee. Only a fool will not have foreseen the coming assassination of Mrs Gandhi. Sikh history is replete with instances of reprisals upon those who have defiled their temples or hurt their spirit. Take for example the slaying of Sri Michael O’dwyer, in 1940, in London, by a Sikh, Udham Singh. Sir Michael was held responsible as Lt-Governor of Punjab, for the 1919 massacre of Sikhs at Jallianwala Bagh. By ordering the attack on the Golden Temple, in June 1984, Mrs Gandhi had similarly sealed her fate. The only question was when, and where, the deed will be done. Plans were, therefore, drawn up to be activated the instant Mrs Gandhi were to be killed. The plans were elaborately drawn. The intent was to wreak the maximum havoc, as borne out by the ferocity and the depth of the ’84 carnage. But, no riot will succeed in the face of stringent law enforcement. Keeping law and order in India, however, depends on communal equation. That is to say who is rioting against whom. For example, within hours of the March 1993 Bombay bombings which were directed at Hindus, Prime Minister Narasimha Rao declared a state of emergency, as was only right, whereas in January he sat by quietly watching the Shiv Sena go on a killing spree against a minority. That the Nov 1984 anti-Sikh riots spread out so far and wide, and were allowed to go on for days, bears witness to a tacit approval from the authorities. It is interesting to note that the current Prime Minister Narasimha Rao served, in November 1984, as Rajiv Gandhi’s Home Minister, with responsibility for domestic security. It is no wonder that a cloud of suspicion hangs over the inner circle of the Congress(I). The Congress(I)) the party ruling India today as it did then in 1984, is equally determined to put the lid on the intrigue. Party veterans w ill admit to no wrongdoing. For them appearances are everything. For instance, Congress(I) took a dim view of the Jan 1994 decision by Buta Singh, a party nob, to do a 56-day penance in historic gurdwaras, at the behest of the Akal Takht Sahib. Buta Singh was judged to have sinned by the Sikh clergy in going against their dictum to rebuild the Akal Takht, Sikhism’s highest temporal seat, which has been turned into a ruin by the June ’84 Indian Army action. Thus there is no end to the on-going conspiracy of silence. Only a wide-spread clamour will unravel the conspiracy. Until now only a handful of well-intentioned activists are hammering away at the wall of silence. They realise the importance for an inter-ethnic bargain, that is, punish the guilty to win over the alienated Sikhs. What is disturbing is that the Sikhs themselves appear in a disarray. Though the Sikhs make up a substantial portion of Delhi’s population, and given the fact that the most of the victims were Delhite Sikhs, it is dismaying to note that they have not mounted a single mass protest or demonstration. It is not that the Sikhs are amateurs when it comes to protests. For instance, recently an estimated 10,000 Sikhs marched to the US Embassy, in New Delhi, to protest US President Clinton’s remark over “a peaceful solution (in Punjab) that protected Sikh rights”. In sharp contrast, another contingent of Sikh activists staged their own pro-Clinton rally. Even Beant Singh, Punjab’s Chief Minister, in a speech at Jalandhar castigated President Clinton for speaking out on India’s record of human rights in Punjab. Not to be outflanked on the matter of patriotism, Maninderjit Singh Bitta, President of Indian Youth Congress, staged his own demonstration at Wagah, near Amritsar, to condemn Pakistan for its human rights violations in “Indian Kashmir”. In absolute terms, no single act of cold-bloodedness can overtop the inhumanity of November 1984. Human rights violations in Punjab, Kashmir, Assam, Bihar and elsewhere have been v oluminously documented by Amnesty International and Asia Watch. It is no surprise that human rights remain India’s Achilles heel. At the June 1993 World Conference on Human Rights, at Vienna, India came prepared to fight it out with her critics. India’s chief delegate at the conference was none other than a Sikh, Manmohan Singh. He is a brilliant economist, but no authority on civil rights. But then who else is better suited to white-wash allegations on human rights violations in Punjab than a Sikh, and a government Minister to boot. Similarly, fully aware that violations of civil and human rights in Kashmir will be at the heart of the March ’94 conference of U.N. Human Rights Commission, at Geneva, India chose a Muslim, Salman Khursheed, another government Minister, to mount the counteroffensive against her censors. So blatant a play of the communal card ought to exacerbate ethnic resentments. Instead such manipulations go uncensured for fear that any questioning of the motives of the government will be tantamount to disloyalty, especially considering that phrases like “anti-India” are increasingly becoming part of the argot of the nation. Consequently, any attempts to redress communal grievances are passed over. And, by keeping mum over the 1984 carnage, the Sikhs appear to have assumed the posture of the proverbial “monkeys who did not see-hear-speak-any-evil.” The code of silence lets the criminals escape without penalty. The more the crimes remain unvoiced or unacknowledged by the Sikhs, lesser the chances for the guilty to be brought to justice. Such taciturnity is a boon to the Congress cabal. They know that time is on their side and that, with each passing year, the memory of ’84 fades a little further into the distance. By not putting a face to death and debasement, the slaying of thousands of Sikhs and the wanton raping of their women, will be reduced to mere cold statistics. These innocent Sikh victims must not be made to have died unjustly, unrequited and unremembered. Feigning of amne sia by influential Sikhs, and stonewalling by Congress bosses is an unholy alliance. By this piquant machination of circumstances Sikhs have become an accessory to the conspiracy. Which is well and good for the authorities who would rather let sleeping dogs lie. After all law and order, in India, is a child of ethno-political undercurrents. For example, Sikh or Muslim terrorists or criminals are relentlessly pursued, apprehended, often tortured, tried, convicted and hanged. The majority community, on the other hand, has yet to pay the price for a similar communal killing. One is, therefore, tempted to ask what good is law if the minorities lack the right of enforcing it. Such discrimination is a cause of great discomfort for the minorities, who are made to believe that their well-being depends on the goodwill of the ‘host’ community. The rights of a minority will, therefore, not prevail when these collide with the interests of the majority. Thus, it appears less likely for Nov ’84 carnage to be solved to the satisfaction of the Sikhs. Despite such a flagrant disregard of their feelings, Sikhs continue to nurse the conspiracy of silence, reminding one of Fydor Dostoevesky’s lament: “is not possible to eat me without insisting that I sing the praises of my devourer?”.

Take a look at http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20040603/ncr.htm

What makes you think I am insulted? I am just curious to see how Sikhs feel about the SGPC. Don't read too much into it man.

would like to see what the members of this forum feel about the SGPC. Has it done a good job or a bad job in the last 30 years as far as Sikhs are concerned? Have they promoted Sikhism and guarded Sikh interests? Comments are welcome.

I would like to see what the members of this forum feel about the SGPC. Has it done a good job or a bad job in the last 30 years as far as Sikhs are concerned? Have they promoted Sikhism and guarded Sikh interests? Comments are welcome.

From www.witness84.com :: The Cremation Grounds :: The Cremation Grounds In 1994 Jaswant Singh Khalra and Jaspal Singh Dhillon of the Human Rights Wing of the Akali Dal 1 (HRW) set out to investigate what had happened to Punjab’s 'disappeared'. Acting on information that police regularly brought bodies to municipal cremation grounds as ‘unclaimed’, they began to search cremation ground records and found that records of bodies brought in by police remained in the receipt books recording the firewood issued for each cremation. Khalra and Dhillon discovered that in just three cremation grounds, within a single district, 3,000 bodies had been cremated as unclaimed or unidentified by police between 1984 and 1994. As it is now known that over 50 cremation grounds across Punjab were regularly used by police to dispose of bodies, even a conservative application of these figures to other grounds means that the estimated number of those cremated by police as ‘unclaimed’ across Punjab could help account for the tens of thousands of people who disappeared in the conflict. The HRW investigation revealed that police regularly cremated as ‘unclaimed’ the bodies of those who were executed in custody or had died as a result of torture, without informing their families, as a way of concealing police responsibility for these deaths. In fact, far from being ‘unclaimed' or 'unidentified', many of those cremated were actually named in the cremation ground records, and were recorded as having died of bullet wounds or other forms of violence. These police practices were in absolute contradiction of the law, which states that a magistrate must conduct an inquiry int o any custodial death, and inform relatives of the deceased who have a right to attend such inquiries,2 and that officers must take all “reasonable steps to secure…identification” of unidentified bodies.3 Khalra and Dhillon had found evidence of appalling police excesses. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jaswant Singh Khalra Khalra’s Disappearance and the State’s Response Having published their findings, HRW petitioned the High Court of Punjab and Harayana to investigate these illegal cremations. However, their petition was deemed inadmissible, as they were not personally related to the victims. Eight months after this failed petition Mr Khalra himself was abducted from outside his home, never to be seen again. Following a petition by Mr Khalra’s wife, the Supreme Court of India finally ordered the CBI 4 to investigate both HRW's cremation ground findings and Mr Khalra’s disappearance. The CBI’s first report confirmed HRW’s claims that the police had been cremating huge numbers of victims as ‘unclaimed’, although the full findings of the CBI report were kept secret because of claims of a ‘national security’ interest. The Supreme Court ordered the CBI to continue with its investigations and ordered the National Human Rights Commission [nhrc] to also launch an investigation.5 However, nine years later, neither investigation has come to any conclusion, victim's relatives have received no compensation, and none of the nine police officers charged with Khalra’s abduction remain in custody. The Indian State has comprehensively failed to provide justice for the victims of its own violence. In its initial dismissal of the evidence of police murder and cover up, and its later appointment of an ineffectual investigation,6 the Indian State has proved itself unwilling to responsibly address its own excesses. On April, 1995, the United Akali Dals released their estimate of the number of Sikhs killed during the 1984 – 19 94 period ; they put the figure at 145,000. The Supreme Court describing the situation in Punjab as “worse then genocide” then directed the National Human Rights Commission to look at issues in the case and offer compensation to the victims. To date the NHRC has offered compensation to only 18 families at the amount of 100,000 rupees (£1, 250), but with no admission of wrongdoing or prosecution of officials. The NHRC admitted that the government had "neither conducted any detailed examination in these cases on merits nor [did] it admit its liability." It concluded: "[it] does not matter whether the custody was lawful or unlawful, or the exercise of power of control over the person was justified or not; and it is not necessary even to identify the individual officer or officers responsible/concerned." Punjab Police officers have asked for blanket immunity, to there human rights abuses. Thus the NHRC has avoided questions of guilt, responsibility and culpability and has added a layer of immunity to police officers. There has been three attempts at independent enquiries, however none have been allowed to operate. The government has each attempt gained court injunctions against such investigations. The Sikh Human Rights Group, Human Rights Watch and Physicians for Human Rights have identified many of the police officers and other security personnel whom eyewitnesses have named as participating or supervising torture, responsible for the detention of persons who were subsequently killed in "encounters" or who disappeared. Such officers remain on duty in their posts - or in some cases have even been promoted - demonstrating that the government has no intention of holding the police accountable for abuses. In February 2002 state elections brought to power a new Congress government in the state, led by Chief Minister Amarinder Singh. The Chief Minister stated his government's intention to "forget the past and think about the future", but indicated also that "the sta te government would fight the legal cases of those police officers who fought against terrorism and secure their release". Thus providing a blanket of impunity and unaccountability to those responsible for acts “worse than genocide” in Punjab 1 Now the ‘Human Rights and Democracy Forum’. 2 Code of Criminal Procedure 1973, Section 176 (1)-(4). 3 Punjab Police Rules 1934, 25.38. 4 The 'Central Bureau of Investigation', the Indian State's highest level investigative police force. 5 Supreme Court Orders, W.P. 497/95 & 447/95 6 The Supreme Court have only allowed the investigation to examine the three cremation grounds initially cited by HRW, and the investigating body, the National Human Rights Commission, is not allowed to investigate any abuses that are over a year old or were perpetrated by the army.

From voicesforfreedom.com Landmines & the Environment in Panjab The Panjabi farmers .had only recently sown this year's wheat. The soldiers planted something else altogether: landmines. (The New York Times 4 January 2002). With an estimated 119 million landmines on the ground in 69 countries, more than 26,000 people across the world either die or get maimed by landmines every year. Landmines are usually hidden and often forgotten and as such, continue to kill and injure people years after the end of conflicts. In Panjab, landmines laid along the border between India and Pakistan caused death, destruction, loss of productive land and environmental degradation. Landmines in Panjab Landmines were laid in Panjab in 2002 as tensions rose between India and Pakistan. Several Panjabi farmers were evicted by Indian troops, who seeded large areas of arable land with anti-personnel landmines outlawed under the Ottawa mine ban treaty of 1997. These minefields are in addition to those laid in the three Indo-Pakistani wars since independence from Britain in 1947. The large-scale land acquisition for placing of landmines has resulted in displacement and dispossession of land of a large number of people living in the border areas. About 98,000 acres of land were acquired in Indian Panjab for construction of defences and mining. India and Pakistan have both not ratified the Ottawa Mine Ban Treaty that prohibits the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of anti-personnel landmines. The two countries still produce landmines and their stockpiles are the sixth and fifth largest in the world, respectively and amount to between four to six million landmines. A re port said the landmines were laid in Panjab with a density of 1000 mines per square kilometre. This was done despite the "grave concern" expressed by the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL). Ms Elizabeth Bernstein, the ICBL Coordinator in an express communication to the Indian Prime Minister, had termed the process "a violation of customary international humanitarian law", because landmines are "inherently indiscriminate", and their "limited military utility is far outweighed by their negative humanitarian consequences". It is interesting to mention here that a 1996 study carried out by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), military experts concluded that in the three previous India-Pakistan wars, the "contribution of these minefields to the ultimate outcome of the conflict was considered to be marginal". Thousands of acres along the Indo-Pak border mined by the Indian Army have no markers to give warning. In some places, only a narrow ribbon with a faintly written sign - khatra . meaning danger in Panjabi is the only indicator for the largely illiterate village population not to stray into these heavily mine fields. In many areas mines have been laid in agricultural or pastoral lands and civilians have been evacuated from these areas. Mine laying a nd transportation are in themselves potentially fatal and an Indian Defence Ministry statement in Parliament confirmed the deaths of at least 176 soldiers due to 'accidents' in the course of mine laying or transportation up to May 2002. There have been several reports of a number of civilian casualties along both sides of the Indo-Pak border involving landmines. Reports in the BBC, the Guardian, The Tribune, Times of India and the New York Times have reported the death of several soldiers, labourers, farmers, pastoral herders and others. For example, a huge explosion near the Indian Panjabi border village of Muhawa killed 29 people and injured 20 others. Among these were 25 soldiers and four luckless labourers who had been repairing the road nearby. The dead were merely the latest victims of India's unrepentant decision to defy international opinion on the use of landmines. Apart from a large number of civilian casualties, deaths of large numbers of livestock on both sides of the border have also been reported, adversely affecting both agricultural and pastoral communities in Indian and Pakistani Panjab. Stray dogs have also been killed in several places along the border. Effect of Landmines on Agriculture Landmines are a serious impediment to agricultural production in Panjab because they degrade very slowly and render land and other natural resources unusable for years. Mine-infested land prevents thousands of households in the region from gaining access to fertile agricultural land. Most of the women and children of the border villages of Panjab were sent away to neighbouring villages. The men were left to stand and stare at fields that are likely to spend the winter without water. Other farmers were forced to abandon their homes that then stand ghostly and deserted. Landmines and Environmental Degradation Landmines not only represent a significant long-term threat to the Panjabi people but are also a form of environmental contamination. Landmines commonly use TNT, RDX or tetryl as high explosive fillers. These substances are soluble, extremely toxic carcinogenic and long-lasting. TNT and RDX are lethal to mammals, aquatic micro-organisms and some fish. Landmines can have severe long-term effects on water supplies as these highly toxic substances from the metal or timber casings disintegrate, leach and poison the surrounding soil and water. The presence of landmines around vital water resources, such as wells, irrigation ditches, and rivers also denies access to water by the local people. The problem may be made worse during the monsoons and flooding, as landmines laid alongside the banks of rivers can move, causing even more uncertainty and havoc. In many cases, however, the indi rect impact of landmines upon the natural environment is more severe. Even the suspicion of mines prevents people from using their natural resources by denying access to sources of water, productive land, woodland, tracks, roads and infrastructure. Not only are landmines a form of environmental degradation, but they also cause and worsen other forms of environmental stress. By denying the Panjabis the use of productive agricultural or grazing land, mines encourage them to move into increasingly fragile, marginal areas, which further the land's environmental degradation. The collateral damage associated with landmines is not limited to civilians as wildlife is often killed. In India, barking deer, clouded leopard, snow leopards, and Bengal tigers have all been killed by landmines. Landmines have a direct and immediate impact and they will continue to haunt the native people and the indigenous wildlife for many years. Even the retrieval of landmines has a detrimental effect on the environment The use of inappropriate mechanical mine-clearance systems can adversely affect the natural ecological balance by disturbing the soil, destroying vegetation, and killing flora and fauna. In the process of clearing minefields, bomb disposal units damage fragile vegetation and destroy habitats. Demining and living with the after effects of Landmines Although most landmines are easily detected, some are not so easy to find because of their low metal content. A landmine cannot easily be traced on the basis of a map. Mine-clearing is usually hazardous as mines may have shifted from their original locations for a variety of reasons. They could change their position due to erosion, rains and soil movement or the work of field rats, which have been known to carry away scores of small anti- personnel mines over large distances. In addition to it, after nearly a year of being exposed to the elements, some of the landmines had become unstable and prone to exploding without warning. The relocation and n eutralization of each and every landmine requires the expertise of specially trained sapper units. Although planting them is cheap - a mine costs only between US $3 and $10 - once planted, its removal costs huge amounts, more than US $1000 each in certain cases. For the thousands of border farmers in Indian Panjab, who were literally forced to vacate their farms to make way for the minefields, the prospect of getting back their farmland is good. But they are anxious that they could be forced to live with the constant danger of landmines that could explode without warning. The Indian army estimates it will take months to clear mines from thousands of acres of land along the border with Pakistan. Many Panjabi farmers, however, fear they will have to live with the danger of mines for years to come. They are worried by reports that mine-clearing is seldom 100 per cent successful. Others, on the other hand, have the horrendous task of attending to needs of the injured. Highly commendable is the work of Jasbir Singh, who is running an NGO, called the .Pritam Spiritual Foundation Trust. for the rights and the rehabilitation of the mine-blast victims. He believes there are over 5,000 victims living in the border areas. He has todate provided artificial limbs to 1,620 people. Bibliography Springer-Verlag. Eliasson, J. (1995) 'An international approach towards humanitarian assistance and economic development of countries affected by land mines', in Clearing the Fields: Solutions to the Global Land Mines Crisis, ed. Cahill, K.M., Gray, B. (1997) Landmines: The Most Toxic and Widespread Pollution Facing Mankind , URL: http://fn2.freenet.edmonton.ab.ca/~puppydog/bgray.htm McAslan, E.and McAslan, A., Environment and Security: Landmines in South Eastern Europe, URL: http://www.google.com/search?q=cache:XhcRa...+on+environment &hl=en&ie=UTF-8 McGrath, R., Landmines: Legacy of Conflict-A Manual for Development Workers Roberts, S. & J. Williams (1995) After the Guns Fall Silent: The Enduring Legacy of Landmines, Oxford: Oxfam. Marwell Zoological Park . Zoological research War And Wildlife: The Afghanistan Conflict and its Effect on its Environment http://www.marwell.org.uk/zr/zr-WarandWildlife.htm Landmine Action: The Campaign Against Landmines - India's deadly defence: the 1,800 mile long minefield URL: http://www.landmineaction.org/news104.asp Wani, S. Let the perpetual minefield wait! Demining Begins In Punjab but in Kashmir... URL: http://www.milligazette.com/Archives/01052.../0105200225.htm Amnesty International India, Amnesty International Pakistan, Greenpeace India and Pakistan-India Peoples Forum for Peace and Democracy - Joint Public Statement on 7th June 2002 India/Pakistan: Use of Antipersonnel Landmines Violation of International law and threat to safety of civilians.

Landmines & the Environment in Panjab The Panjabi farmers .had only recently sown this year's wheat. The soldiers planted something else altogether: landmines. (The New York Times 4 January 2002). With an estimated 119 million landmines on the ground in 69 countries, more than 26,000 people across the world either die or get maimed by landmines every year. Landmines are usually hidden and often forgotten and as such, continue to kill and injure people years after the end of conflicts. In Panjab, landmines laid along the border between India and Pakistan caused death, destruction, loss of productive land and environmental degradation. Landmines in Panjab Landmines were laid in Panjab in 2002 as tensions rose between India and Pakistan. Several Panjabi farmers were evicted by Indian troops, who seeded large areas of arable land with anti-personnel landmines outlawed under the Ottawa mine ban treaty of 1997. These minefields are in addition to those laid in the three Indo-Pakistani wars since independence from Britain in 1947. The large-scale land acquisition for placing of landmines has resulted in displacement and dispossession of land of a large number of people living in the border areas. About 98,000 acres of land were acquired in Indian Panjab for construction of defences and mining. India and Pakistan have both not ratified the Ottawa Mine Ban Treaty that prohibits the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of anti-personnel landmines. The two countries still produce landmines and their stockpiles are the sixth and fifth largest in the world, respectively and amount to between four to six million landmines. A report said the landmines were laid in Panjab with a density of 1000 mines per square kilometre. This was done despite the "grave concern" expressed by the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL). Ms Elizabeth Bernstein, the ICBL Coordinator in an express communication to the Indian Prime Minister, had termed the process "a violation of customary international humanitarian law", because landmines are "inherently indiscriminate", and their "limited military utility is far outweighed by their negative humanitarian consequences". It is interesting to mention here that a 1996 study carried out by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), military experts concluded that in the three previous India-Pakistan wars, the "contribution of these minefields to the ultimate outcome of the conflict was considered to be marginal". Thousands of acres along the Indo-Pak border mined by the Indian Army have no markers to give warning. In some places, only a narrow ribbon with a faintly written sign - khatra . meaning danger in Panjabi is the only indicator for the largely illiterate village population not to stray into these heavily mine fields. In many areas mines have been laid in agricultural or pastoral lands and civilians have been evacuated from these areas. Mine laying a nd transportation are in themselves potentially fatal and an Indian Defence Ministry statement in Parliament confirmed the deaths of at least 176 soldiers due to 'accidents' in the course of mine laying or transportation up to May 2002. There have been several reports of a number of civilian casualties along both sides of the Indo-Pak border involving landmines. Reports in the BBC, the Guardian, The Tribune, Times of India and the New York Times have reported the death of several soldiers, labourers, farmers, pastoral herders and others. For example, a huge explosion near the Indian Panjabi border village of Muhawa killed 29 people and injured 20 others. Among these were 25 soldiers and four luckle ss labourers who had been repairing the road nearby. The dead were merely the latest victims of India's unrepentant decision to defy international opinion on the use of landmines. Apart from a large number of civilian casualties, deaths of large numbers of livestock on both sides of the border have also been reported, adversely affecting both agricultural and pastoral communities in Indian and Pakistani Panjab. Stray dogs have also been killed in several places along the border. Effect of Landmines on Agriculture Landmines are a serious impediment to agricultural production in Panjab because they degrade very slowly and render land and other natural resources unusable for years. Mine-infested land prevents thousands of households in the region from gaining access to fertile agricultural land. Most of the women and children of the border villages of Panjab were sent away to neighbouring villages. The men were left to stand and stare at fields that are likely to spend the winter without water. Other farmers were forced to abandon their homes that then stand ghostly and deserted. Landmines and Environmental Degradation Landmines not only represent a significant long-term threat to the Panjabi people but are also a form of environmental contamination. Landmines commonly use TNT, RDX or tetryl as high explosive fillers. These substances are soluble, extremely toxic carcinogenic and long-lasting. TNT and RDX are lethal to mammals, aquatic micro-organisms and some fish. Landmines can have severe long-term effects on water supplies as these highly toxic substances from the metal or timber casings disintegrate, leach and poison the surrounding soil and water. The presence of landmines around vital water resources, such as wells, irrigation ditches, and rivers also denies access to water by the local people. The problem may be made worse during the monsoons and flooding, as landmines laid alongside the banks of rivers can move, causing even more uncertainty and havoc. In many cas es, however, the indirect impact of landmines upon the natural environment is more severe. Even the suspicion of mines prevents people from using their natural resources by denying access to sources of water, productive land, woodland, tracks, roads and infrastructure. Not only are landmines a form of environmental degradation, but they also cause and worsen other forms of environmental stress. By denying the Panjabis the use of productive agricultural or grazing land, mines encourage them to move into increasingly fragile, marginal areas, which further the land's environmental degradation. The collateral damage associated with landmines is not limited to civilians as wildlife is often killed. In India, barking deer, clouded leopard, snow leopards, and Bengal tigers have all been killed by landmines. Landmines have a direct and immediate impact and they will continue to haunt the native people and the indigenous wildlife for many years. Even the retrieval of landmines has a detrimental effect on the environment The use of inappropriate mechanical mine-clearance systems can adversely affect the natural ecological balance by disturbing the soil, destroying vegetation, and killing flora and fauna. In the process of clearing minefields, bomb disposal units damage fragile vegetation and destroy habitats. Demining and living with the after effects of Landmines Although most landmines are easily detected, some are not so easy to find because of their low metal content. A landmine cannot easily be traced on the basis of a map. Mine-clearing is usually hazardous as mines may have shifted from their original locations for a variety of reasons. They could change their position due to erosion, rains and soil movement or the work of field rats, which have been known to carry away scores of small anti- personnel mines over large distances. In addition to it, after nearly a year of being exposed to the elements, some of the landmines had become unstable and prone to exploding without warning. The relocation and neutralization of each and every landmine requires the expertise of specially trained sapper units. Although planting them is cheap - a mine costs only between US $3 and $10 - once planted, its removal costs huge amounts, more than US $1000 each in certain cases. For the thousands of border farmers in Indian Panjab, who were literally forced to vacate their farms to make way for the minefields, the prospect of getting back their farmland is good. But they are anxious that they could be forced to live with the constant danger of landmines that could explode without warning. The Indian army estimates it will take months to clear mines from thousands of acres of land along the border with Pakistan. Many Panjabi farmers, however, fear they will have to live with the danger of mines for years to come. They are worried by reports that mine-clearing is seldom 100 per cent successful. Others, on the other hand, have the horrendous task of attending to needs of the injured. Highly commendable is the work of Jasbir Singh, who is running an NGO, called the .Pritam Spiritual Foundation Trust. for the rights and the rehabilitation of the mine-blast victims. He believes there are over 5,000 victims living in the border areas. He has todate provided artificial limbs to 1,620 people. Bibliography Springer-Verlag. Eliasson, J. (1995) 'An international approach towards humanitarian assistance and economic development of countries affected by land mines', in Clearing the Fields: Solutions to the Global Land Mines Crisis, ed. Cahill, K.M., Gray, B. (1997) Landmines: The Most Toxic and Widespread Pollution Facing Mankind , URL: http://fn2.freenet.edmonton.ab.ca/~puppydog/bgray.htm McAslan, E.and McAslan, A., Environment and Security: Landmines in South Eastern Europe, URL: http://www.google.com/search?q=cache:XhcRa...+on+environment &hl=en&ie=UTF-8 McGrath, R., Landmines: Legacy of Conflict-A Manual for Development Workers Roberts, S. & J. Williams (1995) After the Guns Fall Silent: The Enduring Legacy of Landmines, Oxford: Oxfam. Marwell Zoological Park . Zoological research War And Wildlife: The Afghanistan Conflict and its Effect on its Environment http://www.marwell.org.uk/zr/zr-WarandWildlife.htm Landmine Action: The Campaign Against Landmines - India's deadly defence: the 1,800 mile long minefield URL: http://www.landmineaction.org/news104.asp Wani, S. Let the perpetual minefield wait! Demining Begins In Punjab but in Kashmir... URL: http://www.milligazette.com/Archives/01052.../0105200225.htm Amnesty International India, Amnesty International Pakistan, Greenpeace India and Pakistan-India Peoples Forum for Peace and Democracy - Joint Public Statement on 7th June 2002 India/Pakistan: Use of Antipersonnel Landmines Violation of International law and threat to safety of civilians.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20040612/...2/punjab1.htm#8 Fresco of Ranjit Singh’s era destroyed Pawan Kumar Amritsar, June 11 The old wall painting of Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s era depicting Maharaja Ranjit Singh holding a Darbar has been destroyed from the haveli in the congested walled city opposite to the Hindu College which was demolished reportedly to raise a shopping plaza. Mr Jasbir Singh Bhatia, a research scholar on Sikh portraits brought the broken pieces to The Tribune office, revealed that this was the rarest wall painting and seemed to be made during Maharaja’s era. He said the painting has shown Maharaja Ranjit Singh in white and black beard and also having a halo behind his head which is rare to be found. In most of paintings Maharaja is shown in white beard and halo. Mr Bhatia expressed his anguish over the attitude of Government which had failed to preserve such rarest treasure. He said government should have identified such heritage and preserve them with available latest techniques. He said the painting seemed to have been made before 1830-32 when Maharaja Ranjit Singh was alive. He said majority of paintings found were of after 1838 having the influence of British painters and made after his death. He revealed that in 1838, Emily Edan, a British painter had painted a picture in a pose which became very famous and adopted by many artists later on. However, this painting had not such influence as this had shown Maharaja Ranjit Singh holding a rose and a man waving a cloth ‘chanwar’, he added. Mr Bhatia said Maharaja has been shown a s sitting on Golden Chair embedded with various precious stones along with Maharaja Kharak Singh, Maharaja Sher Singh, Maharaja Naunihal Singh, Sardar Lehna Singh etc. He said in the facial expression and cloth wearing style showed their status in the Darbar. He said the painting seemed to be the result of Rajput artisan having Rajasthan technique. The base of painting have been prepared with successive layers of limestone, brick powder, white clay mixed with coat of bone and shell powder, curd, milk and honey. This technique is known as ‘Pore’ technique of Rajasthani art in vogue before the beginning of 20th century. Ms Mejinderpal Kaur, Director, United Sikhs Organisation, a human development organisation said that their organisation would do their best to play any role which they were asked to play to preserve such structures and paintings. She said it would be short-sightedness of us if we failed to appreciate and preserve them. She expressed dismay over the government’s attitude towards preserving our heritage.