Anti Sikh Articles 1984

[Guest Jas Singh]

Operation Bluestar

5 Part Report, (June 3rd 2004)

http://www.rediff.com/news/2004/jun/03spec.htm

AND Just today, June 9th 2004

Why Osama Resembles Bhindranwale

http://www.rediff.com/news/2004/jun/10spec1.htm

[Guest Jas Singh]

articles like these have been going on for a long time on this 'news' website, these are just the recent ones

[smartsingh24]

idiots. the whole article is basically just propoganda.

[ms514]

Sat Sri Akal:

"Why Osama Resembles Bhindranwale"

So he writes an entire article and forgets to do what the title promises, show the "resemblance". What's the matter, couldn't find anything?

[Deep Singh]

Similar stuff has come out before: 'Bin Laden and Bhindranwale' was an article written by "Vir Singhvi" sometime in 2002, Indian journalists analyzing the US war on terror and usually tracking the similarities between India's war on 'terror'. B)

http://www.sikhnet.com/sikhnet/discussion....37?OpenDocument

DR. KHARAK SINGH from Institute of Sikh Studies, Chandigarh and member of Dharam Parchar Comm., SGPC answared the article in Sikh Review on June 2002, special issue - MARTYRDOM SPECIAL. Article was called "B for Bin Laden and B for Bhindranwale" (p. 52). I have read it before; but cannot locate it now. Sikh Review website in under construction. :wub:

[cheema_nz]

Waheguroo Jee Ka Khalsa!

Waheguroo Jee Kee Fateh!!

http://www.rediff.com/news/2004/jun/03inter.htm

Interview of General Brar.....

"There was a strong possibility of Pakistan helping them and I think there was the possibility of a Bangladesh being repeated."

Why do they always say Pakistan helped us out.....don't they know that Singhs infact help other and don't they need any help.....Sawa Lakh se ek larayun.....

"As a soldier, if I am given an order, I obey it and 20 years later, all I can say is I wish the situation had never risen that such an order had to be passed. And God forbid we have to do it again."

what does he mean by do it again.....wasn't it enough to turn 80% of sikh youth to cut-hair, more hindu dominated society....

"Why did the army go in just after Guru Arjan's martyrdom day, when the number of devotees is much higher?

That was a coincidence. You must try and understand that perhaps the government had just about three or four days to carry out the operation. We had some sort of information that Khalistan was going to be declared any moment. You try and figure out that one fine day, Bhindranwale declares Khalistan and hoists the Khalistan flag...

The Khalistani currency had already been distributed; Pakistan was pumping in money, they wanted a strong part of India, which is Punjab, to secede and for India to disintegrate.

Can you imagine if one fine day Khalistan has been declared, what would have happened? Pakistan would have recognised Khalistan and crossed the borders to support K

halistan, like we did in Bangladesh. The Punjab police might have crossed over to support Bhindranwale..."

some 1 tell the Mr. Brar that if Sant ji had even announced once that we have our own Khalistan then he wouldn't have been alive today neither would have been any RSS suporter....infact Sant ji wanted to process everything in a very peaceful way....but his voice was never heard by the hindu politicians......and regarding Khalistan currency...I have never heard of it before....I wish I cud have a look at it....it would have been so great to have our very own currency....

I am really amazed at all this crap he tells....bringing in Pakistan.... :wub: @ .....in first place he shud have been sorry for what he did against his very own golden religion....and on top of that he says Sant ji was being aided by Pakistan....

[Deep Singh]

This article should be sent to Rediff once again!

Sant Bhindranwale – Not an Osama Precursor

A Rejoinder to Vir Sanghvi

Dr. Kharak Singh,* Brig. (Retd.) Gurdip Singh (and others)

* 959 Phase 59, SAS Nagar. 160059.

A Rejoinder to the canard titled "Bin Laden and Bhindranwale", by Vir Sanghvi, vide the Hindustan Times, Sunday: Novermber 11, 2001

The substance of the article is based on hazy physical similarities and selectively architectured political parallels between Bin-Laden and Bhindranwale. The pervading import that the article conveys is that Bhindranwale, like Bin-Laden, was a terrorist mastermind. This is not only a gross misrepresentation but also vastly disruptive. The article also contains intrusive comments which are contrary to factual incidences, like ‘words ‘Sikh’ and ‘secession’ in the same sencentence"; "seeking help from Pakistan", or the "physical similarities".

At the outset it must be stated that there cannot be two opinions on the conclusion highlighted in the article that if a fanatic is sponsored for political or religious ends it could only have disastrous consequences. However, the contents and timings in equating Bin-Laden and Bhindranwale are most unfortunate, because it is such misunderstandings that have already caused tragic confusion about the Sikhs in the USA, and elsewhere, in the wake of the backlash of the infamous September 11 episode. When Ayat-ulla-Khomeini had come into limelight in 1979 and there was a wave against him in certain c

ountries, even at that time the physical appearance of Sikhs was mistaken with that of the likes of Ayat-ulla-Khomeini. Therefore, when Sanghavi mentions ‘close your eyes and try and visualize Osama-Bin-Laden’s face’ hundreds of images of those with beard and turban could be thought of resembling Osama-Bin-Laden’s face.

This article also point out a similarity between the names "Bhindranwale" and Osma "bin laden". The similarity is in fact nonexistent; since "bin Laden" means "son of Laden". Among Arabs it is a common practice to mention father’s name also with the maiden name, so that every name in this area would share this similarity.

Apart from the physical comparisons, the nature of the "saga" is vastly different if the whole gamut of the background - personalities, mission and the broad political environment - is kept in view. No doubt there have been politically motivated sponsoring and manoeuvring for ulterior motives in both cases. Yet there are fundamental variances in the circumstances of Bin-Laden and Bhindranwale.

Bhindranwale was neither a terrorist mastermind nor secessionist and was not a protagonist of Khalistan. Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale was the Head of Damdami Taksal which exists for propagating and practice of religious piety and social upliftment. The Damdami Taksal owes its legacy to the legendary Bhai Mani Singh who was a loyal associate of Guru Gobind Singh and the first high priest at Amritsar for over two decades during the crucial period after Guru Gobind Singh. Publicly reported in the Press, Rajiv Gandhi - a few weeks before the Operation Bluestar in 1984 - proclaimed "that Bhindranwale is a saint". Bhindranwale supported the unity of India. In a speech delivered at Manji Sahib on 19th May 1983 Bhindranwale said : "…. We wholeheartedly support the unity of India …. But we cannot lives as slaves…. It is a historical truth that the Sikhs are a separate nation …. For sacrifices the Hindus need Sik

hs, but when it comes to the rewards, the Sikhs are then condemned as second class citizens …. We will not live in humiliation….". The declared mission of the Bhindranwale is quoted by Mark Tully in "Amritsar" at page 113: "I am only responsible for the couse of Sikhism, preaching the fundamentals of the Sikh faith. My responsibility is to see that your beards remain intact, your hair is uncut and that you do not go after the evil things of life, like alcohol and drugs."

Take Sanghvi’s case of looking "to the same country for help: Pakistan". Bin-Laden has operated through Pakistan (including his own and other Muslim countries) in an another foreign country, and in the beginning was backed by a third country. His clandestine operations, initially, were guerilla warfare in support of a foreign ideology and, later on, instigating terrorist acts against a civilization in different parts of the world as religious "jehad", whereas Bhindranwale highlighted the socio-religious discriminations of the community to which he belonged and was also espousing the cause of his state which was economically neglected. These expressions were against the home government. Not that Bhindranwale based his agenda on the instigation of Pakistan, or any other foreign/third country. Operation Woodrose compelled many Sikh youths to cross over the border. Pakistan availed of the opportunity and exploited the situation. In this context the following quote from the book of Mark Tully "No Full Stops in India" at page 180 is relevant:

"….Operation Blue Star, and the military rule that Indira Gandhi imposed on the Punjab after it, went far beyond anti-terrorist tactics."

It is rightly mentioned in the article that ‘the government dithered to flush out Bhindranwale’. But the "dithering" was intended and preconceived. The timing of the Operation Blue Star was orchestrated for an ulterior motive. It was planned and rehearsed at Chakrata for many months.

The operation was to suppress the culture of a people. The mischief was also reported in "The Guardian" - a London Newspaper, as follows:

"Ever since the Prime Minister Indira Gandhi returned to power in 1980, New Delhi has kept alive a crisis in Punjab … to achieve three questionable objectives : to oust the Akali-led coalition state government of 1977-80, to prevent a legitimate constitutional settlement of Punjab’s territorial, river waters and other political and economic disputes with the Centre and, finally, to forge a psychological wedge between Hindus and Sikhs. The Congress Party’s obsession with power, its dwindling standards of political behaviour and its aversion to losing elections, is what led it to become the midwife of extremism and terrorism in Punjab".

Therefore, the contention that "Operation Blue Star must rank as one of the worst executed operations in the Indian history" is quite appropriate. Not only for the reasons mentioned in the article but also for the facts stated above, Dr. Joyce J. M. Pettigrew, a Scottish anthropologist, who spent much time in Punjab doing independent research on the Punjab problem, writes in "The Sikhs of the Punjab", (Zed Books Ltd. London), at page 8 as follows:

"The initial crime (Operation Blue Star) was caliberated and indeed had been planned for a year beforehand. The Darbar Sahib complex, a place of a great beauty, the spiritual and political centre of the Sikh way of life and of the Sikhs, as a whole, their historic home through years of invasion from the West, had its sanctity shattered. The army went into Darbar Sahib not to eliminate a political figure or a political movement but to suppress the culture of a people, to attack their heart, to strike a blow at their spirit and self-confidence".

Sanghvi statement that "Rajiv Ghandi recognized the need for healing as did the Akali leader Sant Longowal" is only half the truth because it was also Rajiv Gandhi who made the

notorious statement about anti-Sikh pogrom in Delhi following the assassination of Indira Gandhi to the effect "that the earth would shake when a big tree falls". The Rajiv Longowal accord itself was not carried through with any sincerity of purpose.

We, the members of the Chandigarh Chapter of the Sikh Core Group, have stressed the above aspects about Bhindranwale realizing that the tenor of the article is like sprinkling salt on not-yet-healed wounds in the Sikh payche. The Nanavati Commission to enquire into the 1984 riots is under progress now after a lapse of 17 years. Furthermore, the publication of a matter questionable from many angles in a widely circulated newspaper is not only injurious to the Sikhs but also to the cause of plural society that India represents.

* * * * * * *

Copy of Published Article (in electronic format) follows:

"Bin Laden and Bhindranwale: Vir Sanghvi"

"Before you read any further, do me a favour. Close your eyes and try and visualise Osama Bin Laden’s face. Does he remind you of anybody? If the answer is no, then close your eyes and think again. Try and focus on that beard and that turban.

There! It wasn’t so difficult, after all, was it? It is the letter ‘B’ that is the giveaway.

B for Bin laden. And yes, B for Bhindranwale.

Almost from the moment that the American campaign against Osama Bin Laden began, I have been struck by the parallels between Bin Laden and our own late, unlamented, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.

It isn’t just the physical similarities. It is the whole nature of the saga. In almost every crucial detail, the Bin Laden story is a mirror image of the Bhindranwale eqisode.

Both Bin Laden and Bhindranwale came from communities that were regarded as ‘friendly’. Bin Laden’s family lives in Saudi Arabia, traditionally America’s closest ally in the Middle East. And till Bhindranwale came along, nobody had ever used the words ‘Sikh’ and ‘secession’ in the same sentence.

Both men were picked up by cynical politicians who used them for their own ends. Bin Laden became part of the US-financed campaign against the Russians in Afghanistan. Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale was picked up by Giani Zail Singh and the Punjab Congress and propped up as a counter to the Akalis.

In both cases, secular establishments thought they could use religion for their own ends. Till Afghanistan, the American strategy in the Cold War had been largely secular. But the US used Islam to try and unite the Muslim world against the Soviets. Muslims from all over the world – Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Yeman, etc. – arrived in Afghanistan to participate in the jehad. Similarly, the Congress had always opposed the misuse of religion for political purposes. But it came to the conclusion that the best way to fight the Akalis would be to prop up somebody who trounced the Akali Dal’s religious appeal with a more fundamentalist form of Sikhism.

Predictably, both Bin Laden and Bhindranwale became rogue elements and turned against their sponsors for reasons that were never quite clear. Bin Laden said it was because Saudi Arabia allowed US forces to be posted on its territory after the Gulf War but nobody could understand why this should so offend a man who had himself participated in a US-funded operation. Bhindranwale said it was because the Congress (and perhaps the Indian state itself) was anti-Sikh, but once again, this made no sense given that he had been raised to prominence by the same Congress he later opposed.

Once they went out of control, both men looked to the same country for help: Pakistan.

Bin Laden became a guest of the Pakistan-controlled Taliban regime. Pakistan was the source of all his supplies, of the medical equipment that kept him alive and of the intelligence that still keeps him one step ahead of his enemies. Bhindranwale established contact with the ISI, was armed by Pakistan and was on the verge of declaring an independent republic of Khalistan with Pakistani support when

the Indian army killed him.

Once both men turned on their sponsors, they should have been hunted down. Instead, they were allowed to get away with it. Even though the Americans knew that Bin Laden was planning terror strikes against US targets, they made no real attempt to stop him. President Clinton tried to strike a Faustian bargain with Bin Laden’s Pakistani sponsors but that deal quickly fell through. A badly planned air strike in the aftermath of the African embassy bombings was only intended to deflect attention from Clinton’s domestic problems and, of course, it did no harm at all to Bin Laden.

Similarly, the Indian government sat tight even though the whole country cried out for action against Bhindranwale. When DIG Atwal was murdered in the Golden Temple, Indira Gandhi’s advisors urged her to use this opportunity to flush out Bhindranwale, but the government dithered.

When the operations did finally begin, it was almost too late. The Americans only moved against Bin Laden after 6,000 of their civilians died. Because Bin Laden had been given enough of an opportunity to hide, he ensured that the US would have to destroy half of Afghanistan, bomb mosques, flatten hospitals and kill civilians in its effort to locate him.

Operation Bluestar must rank as one of the worst executed operations in Indian history. The army went in on the wrong day and hundreds of pilgrims were trapped inside the Temple complex and caught in the crossfire. The over-confidence of our generals had led them to conclude that they could polish off 500 men armed only with hand weapons in a few hours. As it turned out, the Indian army took heavy casualties, the operation lasted three days, they had to use tanks and armed personnel carriers and they destroyed the Akal Takht and damaged the Harmandir Sahib.

Both operations had the effect of angering moderates even though they were directed against religious extremists. The Americans have been horrified by the extent to which international Muslim opinion has

turned against them. And despite their efforts to declare that this is not a war against Islam, this is exactly how it is being perceived by the Muslim world.

In 1984, our official media lacked even the basic sensitivity to assure the Sikhs that this was not a war on Sikhism. Instead, general after general appeared on TV posing as the conqueror of the Golden Temple and Sikhs were treated as though they were all potential Khalistanis. Moderate Sikhs were outraged, Khushwant Singh returned his Padma Bhushan in protest and many Sikh soldiers mutinied.

The upshot was that just as many narrow-minded people now treat all Muslims as fanatics, many Indian began regarding all Sikhs as unreasonable fundamentalists. In 1984, we heard the phrase: "What is wrong with these people? Don’t they see that Bhindranwale has to be stopped?"

Today we hear the same sentiment, except that it is directed at Muslims and ‘Bhindranwale’ has been replaced by ‘Bin Laden’.

It is too early to say how the US campaign in Afghanistan will eventually turn out. But assuming, for a moment, that the Taliban are overthrown and that Bin Laden is found and terminated, then perhaps this operation will also have the same aftermath as Operation Bluestar.

In 1984, the military ‘victory’ was followed by a deep sense of alienation among the Sikhs and a growing communal chasm. Sikh anger led to the assassination of Indira Gandhi and then to the most horrific massacres of Sikhs (not riots, in a riot, people have a chance ot fight back) in Indian history. Fortunately, the new Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, recognized the need for healing as did the Akali leader Sant Longowal. Even so, despite an accord, Longowal was assassinated and Punjab festered for another five years.

Will something similar happen to the US? You don’t have to be a genius to work that out regardless of whether Bin Laden lives or dies, Al-Qaeda will extract some horrible revenge once the West lets its defences down. Inevitably, this will be fo

llowed by an upsurge of anti-Islamic feeling. The Muslim World has not been reassured by George W. Bush’s claims that this is not a war against Islam. My guess is that anti-American sentiment, already at an all-time high, will actually increase.

In India, our democratic structure allowed us to bring Punjab back into the fold. By the 1990s, the extremists had all faded away and the political process had re-established its hold over that previously troubled state. But despite all its rhetoric, America is no champion of global democracy. Its allies in the Muslim world are despots, monarchs, dictators and tyrants.

Not only does that rule out any hope of a healing process assisted by democracy, it also suggests that the American allies will find the going tough in the months ahead. The Saudi royal family is already tottering and Pervez Musharraf could well be in for the high jump.

Regardless of how it all pans out, the twin sagas of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and Osama Bin Laden contain an important lesson for us all. That lesson is this: every time a secular establishment – be it Indian, American, or whatever attempts to use religion for political ends, the operation always rebounds spectacularly on its sponsors. You can never prop up a fanatic and hope that he will remain your fanatic. At the end of the day, he’s never yours. He is just a fanatic."

http://www.sikhreview.org/june2002/view1.htm

[Bhullar]

Waheguroo Jee Ka Khalsa!

Waheguroo Jee Kee Fateh!!

I say we make our own website, promote it all we can. Do whatever we must!!! Give popular websites that will post our link the link. We must counter hate with truth!!. This message should not be ignored. If you are tired of propganda then reply! someone, if you have a good website hosting service, please please reply. If I am not supported, I will still make a site!! We must counter with as much publicity as we can get. We should have a staff made of good members on this site. (Like deep veerji). Its time for us to start an uprising which will make the world aware we still are here and we are still strong. Time for change is coming, but no attention is paid. We can write good articles and we can disscuss what articles to post on the site here!

Waheguroo Jee Ka Khalsa!

Waheguroo Jee Kee Fateh!!