The absolute horror of those black days of June 1984 shake grown men to the core of their beings even today and drive young men before they have even tasted life to martyrdom. Hindu India trampled underfoot the faith of 20 million Sikhs in attacking the holiest shrine of Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar. The Akal Takht, the seat of temporal power of the Sikhs, was destroyed with tanks and artillery. Over 20,000 people, mostly unarmed women and children were murdered in cold blood.
Ever since, there has been a heavy deployment of police and paramilitary forces around the Golden Temple. All buildings within 400 yards of the Temple premises have been demolished in the name of ‘beautification’, of the area. Everyone going to pray in the holy shrine in subjected to a body search.
Yet, on August 23, Indian security forces entered the Temple bareheaded and wearing leather ammunition boots ostensibly to search the premises for suspects in the Ram Das Serai. No permission was sought to enter the premises. The SGPC has become such a government stooge that it was not even informed of this action.
Sprinkling salt on wounds that will never heal will prove to be Hindu India’s undoing. The talk in Delhi and Chandigarh in always of ‘healing touches’ and bringing the Sikhs back into the mainstream of the gutter which India has become. But the actions are the desecration of Sikh shrines and the murder and rape of its youth. Since 1984 over 100,000 Sikhs have been murdered by the Hindu state of India. The plan is simple murder and humiliate Sikhs out of existence.
At first, Hitler too was very successful. He murdered six million Jews before fate caught up with him. The truth is that the Hindu government by each such act is coming closer to its own annihilation.
We are in that brief interlude in the history of the subcontinent where by a strange chance the Hindus have had power thrust on them. How else can their history of 1300 years of slavery be explained. They never deserved to rule as they lacked the ability and this lack of ability has in 40 years come out for the world to see. Preoccupied with its own problems, the world knows what is going on, but has not acted. We have been assured in several nations that things will soon change.
In the meantime, wherever there are Sikhs, the call of Guru Gobind Singh: “When all other means of ending injustice have been exhausted, it is just of wield the sword,” is sending thousands of Sikhs to holy martyrdom.
And as long as there are men of faith the forces of good will triumph over evil.
The loss was not of Sikhs when they made the sacrifices for the Brahmans. The Brahman will again be reduced to beggary as history has a curious way of repeating itself. But this time there will be no Guru Tegh Bahadur, Guru Gobind Singh and his Khalsa on their side.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 31, 1990
