Dear Editor
In his letter “The Seeds of Unrest”, Mr. M.T. Raju has noted that it was Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale who sowed the first seeds of divisive tendencies in Punjab and the formation of Khalistan (I.A,, June 20).
From the time Sant Harchand Singh Longowal started his Dharam Yudh Morcha to the present time, press played an unprofessional role that continues to complicate the Punjab problem. In his book “Punjab The Fatal Miscalculation”, the veteran journalist, Palwant Singh writes, “The irony of the events which propelled towards the abyss lay in the artful innocence with which the country’s media helped ignite the communal key” and he continues, “As the politics of North India polarized along communal lines, not without some manipulation by New Delhi, the national English newspapers became strident in their attack on the Sikhs”, One of such attacks has been made by Mr. Raju.
Sant Jarnail Singh never demanded Khalistan, tape recordings prove that. When Kuldip Nayyar interviewed Sant Harchand Singh Longowal in jail, he told him that Sant Bhindranwale refused to announce the creation of Khalistan even as late as June 5, 1984 and asked the persons who made the suggestion to talk to Sant Longowal about such matters.
I dare Mr. Raju to come out with a proof in support of his statements.
This can be further evidenced by a recent report, The Tribune Bureau, Chandigarh, published in its issue of April 30, 1986 (p.I). It said, “even the late Sant Jarnail ‘Singh Bhindranwale when he was ruling the roost in Punjab stopped short of demanding Khalistan”. It is about time that your readers stopped spreading misinformation about Sant Jarmail Singh Bhindranwale and you, Mr. Editor refrain from publishing such baseless statements.
‘Amarjit Singh Buttar
Member, National Executive Council
W.S.O., USA.
Article extracted from this publication >> July 4, 1986
