There is much talk of holding elections in Punjab soon. Having tried everything over the past six odd years, the Indian government is at its wits end and is trying again the failed attempt to impose a puppet Akali regime of Parkash Singh Badal a la Barnala.
New Delhi, it is learnt, has sent out emissaries to convince Sikhs abroad of their good intentions. Among these are the well-known Ram Jethmalani and George Fernandez. Even the leftist leader Harkishen Singh Surjeet who has become the biggest influence peddler in Punjab today is out trying to woo Sikhs back into the fold of the Hindu Rashtra.
One wonders if the seriousness of the situation has dawned on Delhi for it to allow human rights organizations like Amnesty International into Punjab and Kashmir. We think not. The $25 million in developmental aid India stands to lose is too small a consideration for the changed stance. The truth is that the adverse publicity which is being generated over India trying to hide its terrible human rights record has become unbearable. It remains to be seen how much freedom Amnesty gets once it is inside Punjab.
For the sake of argument, let us say India is conceding some demands of the Sikhs. Well, the Sikhs have been fooled long enough. Let us see how long the world can take India’s democratic eyewash. Frankly the Sikhs are at a point where even if all their demands before 1984 like the ‘Anandpur Sahib Resolution, the river waters, representation in the Indian armed forces and faster industrialization were met, they would still want Khalistan. The breaches of faith by India have been too many and too grievous to be undone, forgotten or forgiven.
Since the British handed the regions of power to the Hindus and the Sikhs made their disastrous choice of casting their lot in India there have been many elections. None of them came near meeting the aspirations of the minorities. In fact ever since 1947, the Sikhs have seen their contribution to India grow and the returns of their labor dwindle.
If there is to be a poll in Punjab today let it be a referendum, a plebiscite to put at rest once and for all what the Sikhs want. The “democratic” tradition of India has been enforced only by the gun. No election so far has been without violence.
It is interesting to see that a super power like Russia which is in far stronger position to impose itself on its occupied territories has chosen to negotiate. The Russians never masqueraded as champions of the individual or people or even of human rights, why does the world chose not to see the fraud India is perpetrating in the name of democracy?
Elections in India are to see who is going to be the next “Marcos” of the state or of the nation. The wealth of the nation is stolen before it is created. We hear VP Singh is an honest man and is trying to rectify things. Good luck to him and to his country. For better or for worse the Sikhs want to go their own way.
The only elections true Sikhs will take cognizance of will be under the constitution of Khalistan. In the meantime, we can only hope that better sense prevails among the Hindu leaders who in letting the Sikhs go will be closer to the Hindu Rashtra of their dreams.
Article extracted from this publication >> July 6, 1990
