The news of burning of sacred “Birs” of Guru Granth Sahib in Guru Arjun Dev Gurdwara in Guru Nanak Pura mohalla, of Nakodar in Jalandhar District spread like wild fire on February 2, 1986. There was a spontaneous strike to protest against the desecration of the holy granth in the town that day.
On February 3, 1986, lawyers stayed away from Courts and students abstained from educational institutions. On a call by the Akali Dals’ a protest march was organized jointly by the Sikh and Hindu communities. Citizens, including women and children participated in the procession. A hartal(strike) was observed in the town.
Shiv Sena plans march
The Punjab Hindu Shiv Sena wanted to take out a procession but the authorities thought it prudent to clamp curfew at 7 P.M. on February 3. Baba Joginder Singh and the Shiv Sena leader, Ramakant Jalota, arrived at Nakodar the same day but the Baba left the town at 5.30 P.M. The same night the police arrested 12 Sena activists who were violating curfew restrictions and moving around with unsheathed swords. Earlier, on February 3, some Sikh youths staged a dharna(protest) outside the Police station and the Bus Stand demanding the arrest of local Shiv Sena leader Mr. Romesh Chopra alias Khan, a vegetable commission agent, who they alleged, was responsible for the fire. At about 4.00 p.m. a large number of villagers joined the youths and gheraoed (surrounded) the Police Station and demanded the arrest of the alleged arsonists. The District Magistrate, Mr. S.C. Aggarwal and the Senior Superintendent of Police (S.S.P.), Mr. Izhar Alam, rushed to the town with Police re- enforcements. There was tension in the town which ultimately led to firing by the Police on February 4, 1986, killing at least four persons and injuring many more, for which the Punjab Government announced a judicial enquiry. The All India Sikh Students Federation (A.1.S.S.F.) rejected the enquiry and called it as “a mere eyewash”. The Federation demanded registration of criminal cases against the Deputy Inspector General of Police (D.I.G.) and site officers responsible for killing the people. They denied the official version 5 “four deaths” and added that many more persons had died and over two dozen injured. The Federation observed “Black Day” on February 8, 4 Ba and asked the Chief Minister to resign on the ground of his failure to control the police force which had killed “innocent Sikh youths”.
Officers shifted, transferred
In the meantime, the Punjab Government announced the suspension of Mr. Surjit Singh, Superintendent of Police(Detective), and Mr.Gopal Singh Ghuman, Deputy Superintendent of Police (D.S.P.) Nakodar while Mr. Harinderpal Singh, Inspector Police and Mr. Izhar Alam were transferred. Mr.
Balwant Singh, Finance Minister of Punjab, observed that the police had behaved “as during Congress (I) rule”.
Mr. Balwant Singh promised that the culprits responsible for burning the “Birs” of the holy Granth would be brought to book, no matter to which community or religion they belonged. Earlier, Jathedar Harcharan Singh Mahalon, Mr. Kuldip Singh Wadala and Mr. Surjit Singh Minhas sat in dharna in front of the Police Station demanding the arrest of the culprits and a judicial inquiry into the police firing. The situation in Shahkot became tense when some Shiv Sena workers, too, gathered near the Police Station. The police, however, managed to disperse them. On February 6, the Punjab Government transferred the D.I.G., Mr.G.S. Bhullar, as a sequel to the incidents at Nakodar. Curfew continued in the town but all the persons who had been arrested for violation of the curfew were released. The Deputy Commissioner, S.S. Aggarwal, declared that cases against 20 Sikh youths under Section 307 I.P.C. (Indian Pena code) were being withdrawn. However, Mr. R.K.Jalota and Mr. SK. Sarwal of shiv sena welcomed the judicial enquiry and condemned the transfer of Mr. Alam and three other Police officers and demanded suspension of the Sub Divisional Magistrate (S.D.M.), Nakodar, Mr Surjit Singh Rajput. They held responsible for the disturbances in the town.
The Sharomani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee(S.G.P.C.) constitute member committee comprind sing Mr. Kabal Singh, Senior Vice president Mr. Kuldip Singh Wadala, an Akali M.L.A. from Nakodar, to enquire into the incident. They concluded that the Police Officers were responsible for mishandling the situation and they should be punished. They said,it was an act of “Anti-Panthic” forces which wanted to create a gulf between Hindus and the Sikhs.
Dr. Baldev Parkash, President Punjab Bhartiya Janata Party(B.J.P.), said in a statement, that the burning of “Birs” of Guru Granth Sahib was a sacrilegious act and the culprits should be punished. Whosoever did it, had committed a grave offence to disrupt the peace and communal harmony. He further warned the people to beware of the forces that wanted to jeopardise the communal amity in the State.
Two views on fire
Many people thought that the fire incident was accidental. However, many others were of the view that it was the handiwork of mischievous elements. The Punjab Human Rights Organization constituted a 5-member Sub- Committee headed by Mr. Dev Raj Sharma, Advocate, to enquire into the circumstances leading to the incident as well as its aftermath. Other members were Mr. Gurbhajan Singh Gill, (Retd. D.S.P.), Mr. H.L. Sethi, Advocate, Mr. D.S. Gill, Advocate, and Mr. Bhalinder Singh, Advocate. The Committee visited Nakodar and went to the Gurdwara where the five sacred “Birs” were burnt. lt also visited other places including Kapurthala Road area where the Police had resorted to the firing; the Saw Mill of Natha Singh wherein one person was alleged to have been killed; the residence of Mr. Pritu, a Balmiki from where two dead bodies of Sikhs were discovered and the Sherpur Bridge and village including a few farm houses, where the police allegedly beat up and arrested the villagers from their homes. The team also met the S.D.M., the Electricity Board Staff, advocates and many other local citizens.
I.B. man visits Nakodar
The Committee examined Mr. Sukhdev Singh Sandhu, Mr. Ravinder Singh, Mr. Sudarshan Singh Bains, Mr. Varinderpal Singh and Mr. C.J. Jain, Advocates; Mr. Romesh Chopra alias Khan, Mr. Mohan Singh Sectional Officer(SO) of the Punjab Works Department P.W.D.), Mr. Swarn Singh, Mr. Tejinder Singh, Mr. Jatinder Singh, Mr. Gurinder Singh, Mr. Pritu Balmiki, Mr. Bachitar Singh, Mr. Mohinder Singh, Mr. Sohan Singh, Bhai Sukhchain Singh Granthi, Mr. Simratpal Singh, Mrs. Gurdip Kaur wife of the Granthi, Mr. Prem Sagar, Municipal Commissioner, Piara Singh, Ex-President Gurdwara and Mr. Vijay Nayar of the Shiv Sena. Observations of several other persons who did not want to disclose their identity were also recorded.
A witness claimed that on February 2, he saw Mr. Umrao Singh, a Congress (I) leader along with Mr. Ranjit Singh Bhinder, a D.S.P. of Intelligence Bureau(|.B), getting down from a jeep. They entered the house of Pundit Narinder Nath Bhutara alias “Nindo”. Pundit Nindo is said to be a patron of the Shiv Sena and a close confidant of Mr. Darbara Singh, the former Chief Minister of Punjab. Mr Nindo had also acted as Election in-charge of Mr. Darbara Singh in the past. After Mr.Umrao Singh and the |.B. man left the town the Shiv Sena workers from outside started reaching the town.
According to Mr. Mohan Singh,( S.O., P.W.D.), when the news of the influx of Sena workers reached the villages, about 40 – 50 persons reached the outskirts of Nakodar where the D.S.P. of Nakodar, Mr. Gopal Singh Ghuman advised them to go back . He told them that they could not be allowed to go inside the town due to curfew restrictions and assured them that the Gurdwaras were safe. Upon which they returned to their homes.
Mr. Ramesh Chopra alias Khan admitted that he was regarded as a prime suspect from the very first day as he had been informed by Mr. Prem Sagar, the Municipal Commissioner( M.C.) the same evening. He added that the Sikhs had given an ultimatum to the police to arrest him by 6.00 p.m. on February 3. He had therefore, collected Shiv Sena activists in Mohalla Tandona and took out a procession at 6.30 p.m. in a show of his strength while raising inflammatory slogans, “Jai Shiv Shakti, Jai Trishul”. The administration imposed curfew restrictions immediately.
Mr Romesh Chopra denied that Mr. R.K. Jalota had stayed with Pundit N.N. Bhutara, he did not allow Bhutara’s entry into the Mandir Devi Talab, the headquarters of the Shiv Sena and that no activists from outside, a Jalota and Sarwal, had entered the town. He further denied his hand in the fire incident and said that he held the Holy Granth in reverence. He pea that Mr. Jaswant Singh, Jathedar Iqbal Singh, and Mr. Ravinder Singh, Advocate, instigated the villagers against him.
On the other hand, Mr. Ravinder Singh, Advocate, alleged that the Sikhs Suspected Mr. Chopra to be a culprit and the authorities had connived with the culprits.
Accusing finger at Darbara-Balwant
A few senior Hindu Advocates of the Nakodar Bar Association revealed i.e. on the night of February 7, 1986, a similar incident took place in the Shan village gurdwara where the culprit had been allegedly captured red-handed and handed over to the Police. He was said to be a Hindu from U.P. in garb of Sikh and was let off. Mr. Umrao Singh and Mr. Swaran Singh belong to this village. Similar incidents took place in the Mandirs of Sarinh village and Nakodar. According to them, this type of activity could be the handiwork of none else than those who were active on the eve of operation “Blue Star”.
But some Sikh advocates of the Nakodar Bar, on the other hand, blamed Mr. Balwant Singh for all the trouble at Nakodar.
THE GURDWARA INCIDENT
Gurdwara, Guru Arjun Dev ji, is centrally located in Guru Nanakpura mohalla of Nakodar where the five “Birs” of Guru Granth Sahib were burnt due to fire in the forenoon of February 2. The Gurdwara is looked after by Granthi, Bhai Sukhchain Singh, who lives on the Gurdwara premises along with his family. The Gurdwara has two gates, one facing the Gurdwara Hall and the other towards the left side of the Hall. The residence of the Granthi is on the right side of the main gate while its kitchen is on the left side of the gate. The “Sukhasan” room is on the right side of the half opening in the verandah which connects the room with the side gate through a passage behind the Hall. The “Sukhasan” room is not visible from inside the kitchen, the wall being windowless. If any person comes through the side gate, uses the rear passage and enters the “Sukhasan” room, causes mischief and returns, he cannot be seen either from the residence or from the kitchen.
No dhoop or jyoti
The granthi opens (Parkash) one “bir” of the Holy granth on the “Diwan” inside the “Sukhasan” room at 5.30 a.m. daily, while four “birs” in closed position (Sukhasan) are kept on the Niwar bed in the room. This “parkash”” is done for devotees who want the recitation individually. Thereafter, the Granthi opens two “birs” in the main hall for the routine recitation. No
“Dhoop” or “Jyoti” is inside that “Sukhasan” room. On the day of occurrence, February 2, 1986, Bhai Sukhchain Singh conducted his routine duties and left the Gurdwara to perform “Anand Karaj” (Marriage ceremony) at the residence of one Sadhu Singh on the Noormahal Road. According to the Granthi, he placed the Gurdwara keys inside the
“Sukhasan” room at 8.45 a.m. as usual and left the place. Mrs. Gurmit Kaur, a widow and a devotee of Guru Nanakpura mohalla who Lives close to the Gurdwara, was seen cleaning the “Sukhasan” Room at 9.15 a.m. by many devotees lives of the locality. It was her routine work.
At about 9.45 a.m. Smt. Gurdip Kaur, wife of the Granthi, while going towards the kitchen heard cracking of glass panes and saw flames leaping out of the window of the “Sukhasan” Room. She ran outside and raised the alarm. Local residents rushed to the spot and threw water to extinguish the fire.
The administration and the police was informed. The S.D.M., Mr. Surjit Singh Rajput, and the D.S.P., Mr. Gopal Singh Ghuman, reached and inspected the spot. By the time the Granthi, too, came back.
The “Bir” which lay on the Diwan and open on page 792, was largely burnt. The niwar bed became a skeleton whereas the Diwan was half burnt. The “Romalas” were also burnt. The room, windows and the door were damaged
due to mounting flames of the fire. The mat flooring and cloth sheets were also burnt. The persons and the officers present there, ruled out the possibility of any accident or negligence. Case F.|.R.(First Information Report) No. 50 dated 2.2.1986 under Section 295/439 IPC was registered at 10.35 a.m. in Police Station Nakodar at the instance of Smt. Gurdip Kaur.
Accident or negligence?
It was decided by the persons present at the Gurdwara including members of the Management Committee that the burnt “Birs” would be taken to Sri Goindwal Sahib for the last rites. But some Akali leaders including Mr. Ravinder Singh, Advocate and Jathedar Iqbal Singh advised against such a move. This decision contributed to the deterioration of the already tense situation.
At about 5.00 p.m., the S.S.P. Mohd. Izhar Alam accompanied Oren Additional Deputy Commissioner(A.D.C.), Mr. Darbara Singh “Guru” inspected the spot and without any further enquiries concluded that the Be of the accidental and the fire was caused due to negligence on the part of the Granthi. Most of the local citizens did not agree with this police ve Sake demanded identification of and stern action against the guilty as it errs I of desecration of the Holy Granth Sahib. But the S.S.P. remained By the on his stand. It resulted in flaring up of the already tense situation.
By the nightfall, the news of burning the Holy Granth and the inaction of the p reached the Surrounding villages.
The Sub-Committee of the P.H.R.O., inspected the Gurdwara premises and examined several residents of the Mohalla including Hindus.
The committee after careful inspection of the “Sukhasan” room and eliciting the view of experts has reached the conclusion that the fire could not be the result of an accident as there was no short Circuit, the electric wire and fuse were intact. The committee also does not subscribe to the negligence theory because there was no “Dhoop” or “Jyoti” lit nor there was any candle. There was no failure in the supply of electricity that day. This conclusion is also warranted by the assertions of Mr. R.K. Gupta, in charge Sub-Division, 132 K V Station and Mr. Amolak Singh, Sub Divisional Officer( S.D.O.) of the Punjab State Electricity Board(PSEB), on the subject. According to them there was neither any cut in the supply of electricity nor was there any complaint regarding power failure from Guru Nanakpura mohalla on February 2, 1986.
CONCLUSION
Having ruled out the accident and negligence theories as explained above, the committee is inclined to believe that the fire was man-lit possibly with the aim of creating mischief. It is inescapable for the committee to conclude that a communal clash, was the object behind the mischief. This conclusion is Supported by the circumstances. It was reported to the committee by the residents that similar incidents took place at Shanker and Sarinh villages as well as in Nakodar itself where mischief was attempted at two Gurdwaras and one Mandir prior to the Nakodar incident. The committee is very much concerned and is anxious to know the real reason for the presence of an Intelligence Officer, Mr. Ranjit Singh Bhinder along with Mr. Umrao Singh, a Congress (I) leader, at the residence of a patron of the Shiv Sena , soon after the incident. The committee was intrigued to hear from Mr. Ravinder Singh, a close friend of Mr. Balwant Singh, Finance Minster, Punjab, that Mr. Romesh Chopra of Shiv Sena could be the culprit. It is interesting to note that Mr. Ravinder Singh was instrumental in reversing the local Gurdwara Committee’s move to take the burnt “Birs” to Goindwal Sahib for the last rites. A few lawyers of Nakodar claimed that Mr. Umrao Singh and Mr. Balwant Singh were very close to each other although they belonged to two different political camps. Mr. Umrao Singh contested from Nakodar Constituency and was defeated by Mr. Kuldip Singh Wadala. Mr. Wadala and Mr. Balwant Singh are known to belong to two different factions within the Akali Party.
Due to a combination of political and other interests, Mr. Umrao Singh, Mr, Darbara Singh and Mr. Balwant Singh are stated to be close to each other. A few senior Hindu Advocates, who do not want to be identified, are of the view that Mr. Darbara Singh’s role in igniting the communal fire could not be beyond the realm of suspicion due to expertise available to persons like him and because they were responsible for the very elements who had thrown cow tails in mandirs (temples) and packets of cigarettes in Gurdwara Sarovars (Sacred Pool) on the eve of the operation “blue star”.
THE FIRING INCIDENT
On February 3, 1986, a protest march, in response to a call given by Akali Dal, started at 10.00 am. from Gurdwara Guru Arjan Dev Ji in Guru Nanakpura mohalla. Sikh students of all the three local colleges also joined the march. It was organized after the police failed to apprehend the culprits. Both the communities participated, including the local advocates who in addition observed a strike that day. Akali workers a day earlier had given a call through the public address system for the march. Mr. Kuldip Singh Wadala along with some local leaders led the march. Five Singhs carried unsheathed kirpans in their hands as a show of tradition. Mr. Kuldip Singh Wadala left the march when it reached Sabzimandi. The procession reached Ambedkar Chowk shouting slogans. (The murderers of Guru Granth Sahib be arrested, the desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib shall not be tolerated).
A clash averted
According to Mr. Gurdarshan Singh Bains, Advocate, who was at Ambedkar Chowk just near his residence, when the protest march of about 1000 Persons reached the chowk, a small rally was held in which some Sikh you including students demanded the arrest of “Khan” in connection with the Gurdwara fire incidents.
About 700/800 Shiv Sena workers who had gathered in Tandona Mohalla adjoining the Chowk, rushed towards the Chowk raising slogans.
The counter-slogan by the Sikh youth was: “Khalistan Zindabad”. The local citizens started dispersing from the Chowk while the precisionists mostly students and villagers proceeded towards the police station and the Shiv Sena workers towards Mandir Devi Talab. Mr. Bains testified that Shiv Sena workers were armed with unsheathed swords and lathis. When the procession reached the Bus Stand, according to Mr. Ravinder Singh, Advocate, there were about 200 Sikh youths who held a rally there. They were demanding the arrest of Mr. Romesh Chopra again. From there they sat on “Dharna” in front of the Police Station and gave an ultimatum to the police that in case Mr. Romesh Chopra was not called for interrogation by 6.00 p.m. they would decide the next course of action next morning at Gurdwara Guru Arjan Dev Ji. In the meantime, Mr. Ravinder Singh said – Mr. Kuldip Singh Wadala, Mr. Ajit Singh Khattar, Mr. Charan Singh and Mr. Jaswant Singh, Circle Jathedars requested the S.S.P. and A.D.C. present in the Police Station to round up Mr. Romesh Chopra so that the inflamed tempers of the Sikhs were pacified. But the S.S.P. remained adamant and asserted that he had summoned more police forces from Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur and other districts to deal with the situation firmly.
S.S.P.’s adamant attitude
Baba Joginder Singh, too talked to the S.S.P.and A.D.C. at Gurdwara Guru Arjan Dev Ji at 5.00 p.m. but to no avail. Babaji, later, pacified the Sikhs and requested the Hindus present there to help the identification of the culprits so that the whole community was not blamed for the act of one individual. He later left Nakodar.
At 6.00 p.m. two Motor Cyclists, in plain according to Mr. Bains. They watched brought police along with C.R.P.F. who dispersed the afterwards the curfew was clamped.
Mr. Bains testified: “Mr. Ramakant Jalota and Mr. R.K. Sarwal, Shiv Sena leaders alongwith a large number of their members and workers from outside the Mohalla Tandona area reached there before the curfew was imposed.
