Jump to content

Revisiting the day Sikhphobic scumbags murdered our 35 kashmiri sikh brothers


genie
 Share

Recommended Posts

'Names of killers still reverberate in my ears': 19 years after Chittisinghpora massacre, lone survivor recounts night that killed 35 Sikhs

India Aamir Ali Bhat Mar 21, 2019 00:11:02 IST

 

Anantnag: It was 20 March, 2000. The sky was murky and overcast. Just after dusk, worshippers were walking back home from the temples in the Sikh-dominated Chittisinghpora village in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district. Some were chatting by the roadside while the women were busy preparing dinner.

It was a routine evening. Nobody would have thought that the small pastoral hamlet with a stunning natural landscape was about to change, that the idyll would be shrouded in horror and distress.

A group of masked gunmen in army fatigues barged into the village. They split into two groups and rounded up 36 Sikhs, including teenagers, the young and the elderly. They made two groups of Sikhs stand outside the two gurdwaras in the area located just 150 metres apart. The terrified Sikhs were unsure what was going to happen when in unison, both groups of gunmen fired indiscriminately at point-blank range. All, except Nanak Singh, then 39, died.

Names of killers still reverberate in my ears: 19 years after Chittisinghpora massacre, lone survivor recounts night that killed 35 Sikhs

Nanak Singh, the line survivor of the Chittisinghpora massacre. Image courtesy: Aamir Ali Bhat

The gunmen left, leaving behind a trail of dark memories that still haunt the villagers. The massacre had sent shockwaves across India. Around 30 women were left widowed and scores of children were orphaned that dreadful night.

The memories of the carnage are still fresh in Nanak's mind. The soft-spoken and grey-bearded survivor of the Chittisinghpora massacre is a retired government employee. He lost his son, brother and three cousins that night. This is his recount of the tragedy:

Winter had just passed in Kashmir. It was still a bit cold outside. I had donned a pheran. Like every day, we were gossiping as we walked home from the temple. A group of gunmen in army fatigues entered our village through a narrow lane from the back, their faces were covered with a mask. Their sudden presence didn’t frighten us as it was normal during those days. We thought they were fauji (soldiers).

Later, their actions signalled that something unusual was going to happen. I don't know how many of them were there, but it was a huge group and one leader was giving them directions. They broke into two parties. One group went down the road towards Shaukeen Mohalla Gurdwara.

"What's happened, sir? Is everything alright?" we asked the gunmen.

"Yes, everything is alright. We have to check your identity cards. It will take 10 minutes. Stay here," they replied.

The wall in the background contains pictures of those killed in Chittisinghpora massacre Image courtesy: Aamir Ali Bhat

The wall in the background contains pictures of those killed in Chittisinghpora massacre Image courtesy: Aamir Ali Bhat

Some of them barged into houses located close to the two gurdwaras and brought more men out. Among them were my son Gurmeet Singh, who had recently passed Class 10 exam, my 28-year-old brother Darbari Singh and three cousins — 22-year-old Sartaj Singh, 20-year-old Kulbeer Singh and 25-year-old Ujjal Singh. Sartaj had been married for 10 months while Darbari was a farmer with two kids. Both his children aged less than 10 years.

"Where are the militants? We have information that some militants are visiting this village," they said.

"We haven’t seen any militants, Sir. You may have the wrong information," we replied.

Sinister thoughts crossed my mind. I murmured into the ear of my neighbour Charan Singh, standing by my right, that we were going to die today. We could sense a murderous frenzy in the actions of the gunmen.

They lined us up outside Singh Sabha Sumandri Hall Gurdwara. There were 19 of us. My son was beside me. I still remember I was seventh from the left side.

At the same time, the other group of gunmen placed 17 Sikhs in a row outside Shaukeen Mohalla Gurdwara, 150 metres down the road. It was 7.45 pm. There were eight to 10 gunmen in front of us. We were still unsure about their plan.

The first spot of Chittisinghpora massacre were 18 Sikhs were killed. Image courtesy: Aamir Ali Bhat

The first spot of the Chittisinghpora massacre where 18 Sikhs were killed. Image courtesy: Aamir Ali Bhat

One of them fired in the air — a signal to the other group to get ready to kill. Then they shot indiscriminately at us. The firing continued for a few minutes. All of us fell to the ground.

I didn’t receive any bullet, but I dropped to the ground and played dead, I was murmuring, "Waheguru Ji, Waheguru Ji", under my breath. They stopped firing and flashed torches at us. "Akh round aur maro saalu ko. Koi nahi bachna chahiye (Shoot these idiots again. Make sure everyone is dead),” one of them ordered. I became ready to die this time.

They fired at us again, and one bullet pierced my left leg and broke my right thigh joint. I didn’t scream. As they left, vanishing through the route they had come, they chanted 'Jai Hind!', 'Jai Mata Di!' and 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai!'

I was bleeding profusely. I opened my eyes and found someone had clutched me with his arm. I lifted his arm and looked closely, it was my son Gurmeet. I shook his body, I called him, tried to wake him up. Then I touched his head; it was soaked in blood. Tears rolled down my face. I was not able to stand up. I wanted a sip of water.

 

A pile of bodies was lying before me in a pool of blood, some were still shaking and wobbling. Each man was hit by 10 to 12 bullets. That dreadful scene is imprinted on my mind.

My cousin Sartaj was robust. With his bullet-riddled chest, he walked up to our house. Then the villagers came, beating their chests. They picked me up. The gunmen had turned our village into a slaughterhouse. The road ran red, and blood squished under shoes.

The Bullet marks are preserved at the second spot where 17 Sikhs were killed in the Chittisinghpora massacre. Image courtesy: Aamir Ali Bhat

The Bullet marks are preserved at the second spot where 17 Sikhs were killed in the Chittisinghpora massacre. Image courtesy: Aamir Ali Bhat

 

Sartaj and I were placed in a room. There was no vehicle in the village. Men, women, children, everyone was crying and screaming for help. Some young Sikh villagers ran to the police station, around seven kilometres away from our village. I too was crying. Shrieking. I had witnessed the brutal death of my loving son.

"Why are you crying? Stop screaming," Sartaj was telling me in a broken voice.

By the time police reached our village, Sartaj had taken his last breath. He might have survived if he had been given immediate treatment. The police took me to Anantnag district hospital, from where I was shifted to Bone and Joint Hospital, Barzulla, Srinagar. The next day, I was referred to the army hospital, where I stayed for 25 days and was operated on once.

I was still unable to walk. I went to Amritsar, where the Sikh committee took me to a senior doctor. I was operated twice. My damaged hip joint was replaced by an artificial one.

It took me months to recover. I didn’t even take part in my son's last rites. I stayed with my relatives in Jammu for some time, to get over the shock. Nothing is worse than to witness the gruesome murder of your loved ones.

While the gunmen were conversing, I had heard three names — Pawan, Bhansi and Bahadur. I don’t know if these names were fake or real, but they still reverberate in my ears.

As the lone survivor of the massacre, I gave scores of interviews. I was an eyewitness in a number of courts and government offices. Nothing happened. Then we lost hope of justice. It was a premeditated massacre. We only saw a flawed inquiry and later, fake promises.

A widow points at the name of her husband killed in the Chittisinghpura massacre. Image courtesy: Aamir Ali Bhat

A widow points at the name of her husband killed in the Chittisinghpura massacre. Image courtesy: Aamir Ali Bhat

The massacre was carried out to give a wrong message about Kashmir to former US President Bill Clinton, who was visiting India.

Everyone is aware of the Pathribal fake encounter, in which five innocent civilians were killed, and later dubbed militants responsible for the Chittisinghpora massacre. Even the CBI report suggested that the five civilians were killed in cold blood in Pathribal.

After the massacre, people suggested I migrate from Kashmir. But I refused. Why would I leave my village? I was born here. I lived here and will die here. We didn’t make an issue of the massacre. Everyone in Kashmir had been witnessing death and destruction for decades now.

We still live happily with our Muslim brothers. The criminals failed to break our bonds.

I can only say that it was a miracle that I survived, for hundreds of bullets were fired at us at point-blank range.

Three-day mourning for Chittisinghpora massacre victims

Nanak now lives with his other son, Manmeet Singh, also a government employee.

Every year, on the anniversary, Sikh villagers of Chittisinghpora commemorate their loved ones. They observe three days of mourning and memorial events. They have preserved the haunting memories of the massacre, but have lost hope of justice. Nineteen years have passed, and the killings are still shrouded in mystery.

After the Chittisinghpora massacre under SRO-43, every victim's family was given Rs 1 lakh and a government job.

The author is Anantnag-based freelance writer and a member of 101Reporters.com, a pan-India network of grassroots reporters

Firstpost is now on WhatsApp. For the latest analysis, commentary and news updates, sign up for our WhatsApp services. Just go to Firstpost.com/Whatsapp and hit the Subscribe button.

Updated Date: Mar 21, 2019 00:11:02 IST

 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, MisterrSingh said:

Sikhphobic in the context of this particular instance doesn't even make sense. It was terrorism. 

Sikhphobic = fear, dislike or hate for Sikhs

offcourse it was sikhobic but also terrorism. I'm just trying to show sikhphobia leads to this kinda terrorism and acts of violence if not countered and and challenged early on. Our tolerate airy fairy inactive community tolerating it is part of the problem no matter how small it is it should be challenged whether from white terrorists (wisconsin 2012, covert and overt casual racism and violence), hindus (1984), musilms (1947, mughuls, grooming gangs, etc) blacks (covert and overt casual racism and violence).

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share

  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt


  • Topics

  • Posts

    • lol dal panth Panj told me explicitly not to associate with Vadhbhag Singh Sodhi followers!
    • We have lamp (or Jyot) the pure unscented candle for a reason. Traditionally, Patis used candle light (jyot), so they could read SGGS in darkness. Light, elec didn't exist. Dhoop is used to attract the "Good spirits" but also keep freshness where Maharaj will be.  Interestingly and coincidentally I heard Sakhi a few dsys ago. During Dasa Pitha's time these souls were roaming the Earth and even Sangat noticed. Maharaj asked them "y u here?" They replied during recitation of SGGS and making Degh they didn't bother lighting candle. THAT WAS THEE ONLY REASON NO GATI WAS GIVEN TO THEM!!!  AUTHENTICITY NOT CHECKED I heard once on YT like 2 days ago.  If u apply dhoop in one room of your house twice a week u will notice a difference esp in the smell and freshness of that room. 
    • Sangat ji, With the hot weather as per Guru's Hukm, how can we look after our kes?  First of all the beard! Working in Construction, factory and any other heated environment I UNDERSTAND! At my workplace it's over 32 degree celcius and sometimes we have to lift 20kg ALL! DAY! My tips, regularly shampoo the beard during ishnan. APPLY OIL! The technique of applying oil is by rubbing it thoroughly in the roots. Pay attention to the noise esp on the chin. You will hear this "crosh crosh" noise. Keep rubbing oil until u can't hear it no more! This means the oil has blended in properly.  Second tip on beard, keep an extra kanga in your pocket. Every two, three hours give your beard a proper comb down to get rid of any sweat or stickiness. SECOND BENEFIT! Do this all 12 months every single day your beard will look like it's been professionally groomed. TRY IT! People will ask you "What gel u use? How can yer beard be naturally like that?" You can say all I use is coconut oil or whaeva oil but just comb the beard every 2-3 hours for a minute.  As for the kes, morning time get rid of all the gronjra (or knots - forgotten English word), in the morning. However, during evening comb down make sure you get rid of small remaining gronjra and comb yer hair nice and straight. You will feel soooo so relaxed. Yes our hair will go unnoticed due to Dastar, but our hair demands time and self grooming!So proper combing down, spending a good 15-20 mins most evenings is an absolute MUST!  Most evenings I let my hair down and cover hair with my parna for 2-3 hours so it gets to relax from the tying up.  FINAL TIP! We are Sikhs so we keep fighting and remember this! The tradition of Dastar and uncut hair started in India, where the weather is twice as hot. Everytime we bring this thought in the mind, Guru ji will bless us and make us feel cooled down by a notch.  Fateh.       
    • Been so much nindya and attacking Shastarvidiya since the 2000s, however if we look at gatka now it's still mostly as poor and poorly taught as it was back then, still morris dancing moves and still behzti moves in BBC shows about sikhi and vaisakhi. If people were going to attack shastarvidiya, wouldn't have made sense to improve gatka instead and make it more effective? Additionally, the Nihang Singh presence has improved greatly now, and the cracks within the the SGPC and affiliated jatha jathebandis are showing more greatly as panth becomes more knowledgable with dasam bani and itihas day-by-day, so much gyaan which was lost within panjabi sikhs during colonial times. In the 2000s, the groups were able to talk down this bani and  gyaan by associating it with  RSS and hindus, brahminwaad etc. Not working so well now is it? However with gyaan it would be also good for us to try and preserve our martial arts and keertan vidiya as well! More and more crazy keertan videos are coming out from jatha members that are being made fun of and making sangat annoyed and upset, on tiktok and instagram reels.  
    • Author Posted April 24   On 4/21/2025 at 2:43 PM, ipledgeblue said: sirr should not be nanga because keski is usually worn.   Sikhs can sleep nanga-sirr if they choose to . Being from Punjab, almost every Sardaarji i know (amritdhari or not) sleeps/showers with their hair uncovered. I don't think Guru Sahib asked us to wear Dastar to sleep and I don't think it is in SRM.   The idea of "keski being worn to sleep" is cos in Bollywood films (Bachna Ae Haseeno) Sikh characters usually tie a gol parna when sleeping since the actor's usually Hindu. So they gotta cover his head somehow or he'd have cut hair. Same reason Diljit wore a pagg to bed in the El Sueno vid. Only time they didn't do that was in Gadar with Sunny Deol which just looked odd tbh   What in the world? What sikh or even a decent human would base their knowledge of their culture or religion on a movie industry, that too Bollywood?  Believe me, no sikh ever said, I must cover my head becasue an actor did so in a movie. I've been doing it all wrong, I must start covering mh head because the sikh in that movie did.  Just because every panjabi and sardaar you know, does something, also doesn't make it right..  Follow the guru. And if you have a medical condition, then exemptions can be made.  Just admit it, because of my medical condition, I am not able to follow this rehit. Why are you getting everyone else to drop to your level?
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Terms of Use