The reader may first want to know why one would review a book that was published almost 16 years ago. The book deals with some harsh realities of the 18th century; unfortunately they are just as pertinent 200 years later and certainly more so now than in 1976 when Malik analyzed the Sikh guerilla war of the post-Banda period.

When all peaceful means fail and civilians take up arms the result is an insurrection; one form is guerrilla war. The guerrilla can live to fight another day only if he has the tacit support of the silent majority of the people. He exists among his people as a fish in the ocean. A guerilla movement would soon disintegrate and end if it did not enjoy the sympathy and cooperation of otherwise passive masses. A guerilla is a crusader infused with divine inspiration and firmly believes in the nobility of his objectives. He is filled with dedication and is intensely motivated He becomes the conscience of the people. In the process the crusader gladly embraces death.

This book expounds the thesis of Indian guerilla war in general in its various aspects: conditions leading to insurgency objectives tactics strategy and composition of the army. However its main focus is on the Khalsa army in action during the tumultuous post Banda period.

The Khalsa army was formed by Guru Gobind Singh on Vaisakhi March 30, 1699. The event was presented in a highly dramatic fashion that had a deep everlasting psychological impact. The breath-taking call by the Guru transformed the Sikhs both externally and internally. Meek helpless low caste people were rejuvenated with the baptism of Amrit and in their rebirth they reaffirmed their commitment to their Guru and the Panth They also waged a war against tyranny and oppression and yearned for freedom and sovereignty Vaisakhi of 1699 changed the history of India forever. India would never be the same again.

Malik very clearly defines the Khalsa guerilla war in all its aspects. In the absence of historical documentation of what the Sikhs thought and planned the author retrospectively relied on the strategies employed by the Khalsa army. By critical analysis he defines reasons for guerilla survival and success. The need for social justice and freedom of faith along with political aspirations led the Khalsa army to engage in guerrilla warfare in the post-Banda period after 1716 AD.

It not only tells about the guerrilla war bloodshed holocaust and foreign invasion but gives us insight into socioeconomic religious and military aspects of the Khalsa army as well. The creation of the Rakhi system the formation of the Sarbat Khalsal the military and moral discipline of the Khalsa which were commendable. The author in no uncertain terms blames Lakhpat Rai a Hindu government bureaucrat for precipitating the bloody trail of Ghalughara.

It becomes clear from Maliks narrative that even 200 years ago the Sikh nation was wrestling with a problem which besets them today and perhaps has always vexed them: What kind of a governing model to evolve. The Sikhs experimented with over centralization and total decentralization in the post-Banda period. Whenever they had their back to the walls the Sikhs reorganized into smaller more maneuverable bands; in times of peace larger aggregates were seen. The same problems exist even today with one major difference. Two hundred years ago organizational splits resulted in autonomous groups which cooperated in matters affecting the Sikh nation; now autonomous groups define themselves at the expense of other groups. The Sikhs have yet to work out the degree and mix of centralization and autonomy suiting their needs and temperament at a given time. Decentralization certainly is safer for a guerilla group though some degree of centralization is necessary to govern a nation.

Malik published this book in 1976 predating the current Sikh struggle for sovereignty but some comparisons are inevitable. In many ways the situation in the Punjab now in 1992 is reminiscent of the post-Banda period. In 1984 the Indian government declared that there were 49 hard core terrorists and Sikh separatists in the Punjab. The estimate was revised first to 100 and three years later to 300. Finally in 1989 government spokesmen declared that terrorism in Punjab could last 50 years. There is little question that the struggle for Sikh sovereignty was largely peaceful until 1984 but has since developed a significant armed component. Just as in the post-Banda period now at the tail end of the 20th century many times the governments of the day claimed that the back of the insurgency was broken only to dig a deeper hole for them. Then and now the insurgents have been labeled terrorists by the government freedom fighters by their people.

There can be little doubt that such a metamorphosis in the present Sikh struggle could not have occurred without three important elements that also operated in the post-Banda period: !) a pervasive sense that peaceful means were leading nowhere 2) tacit but extensive support and sympathy of the people for the cause of the fighters and 3) the widespread conviction of the inability of the government to deliver what is generally perceived to be elementary justice. In other words the same three conditions appear to exist now as were found in the post-Banda period by Malik.

Guerilla wars are often protracted and messy affairs where the leader’s methods or goals often defy clear definitions. This was true in the case of the Marathas or the Sikhs fighting the Mughals in the 18th century and was equally seen in the Vietnamese struggle. One has to ask the rhetorical question if by such logic and criteria as presented above the present Sikh struggle appears to have evolved into a guerrilla war against the existing Indian government. Interestingly the objectives and strategies are quite similar as employed by current crusaders in this ongoing movement.

Maliks understanding of the Sikhs shows a few conceptual flaws. The terms Akali and Nihang are not synonymous though they are used interchangeably by him. The author claims that “Guru Gobind Singh proclaimed in Bacchitra Natak that the Khalsa was born to defend Hindu Dharma”. The text of Bacchitra Natak talks of defending Dharma there is no mention of Hindus. In general the book served its purpose. The writer is objective in his approach.

The flow in narration is spontaneous and smooth in spite of the fact that it is a heavy historical account; the text is well referenced. It is a useful book on a period of Sikh history (post-Gurus) which has received scant attention. The book reminds one of T.S Eliot when he talked about the “cunning passages and contrived corridors of history.”

I.J. Singh New York

Amrit Kaur Virginia

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