Sir,

Mishandling of Thakkar Commission Report by Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was another setback to the democratic institutions and independence of judiciary in India. Since the time of his mother, Indira Gandhi, the powers of the institutions of democracy have been crumbling under the pressure of rise of personality cult and personal loyalty, thus undermining the foundations of democracy. The same scenario is repeating itself under Gandhi regime.

First, the Thakkar Report was not made public on the pretext of Sensitive information, and when it got leaked and excerpts were published in Indian Express, then the government showed the nation’s parliament only those portions of the report which it wanted them to see. This was rightly called an insult by the opposition to the highest elected legislative body of the country the parliament. When the members of the parliament protested against this scrupulous behavior of the government, they were suspended en mass by the speaker from taking part in further proceedings of the house.

Even the President of India did not have access to the report before he could decide on the mercy petition of Kehar Singh who was convicted of conspiracy on trivial and flimsy circumstantial evidence according to several legal experts and jurists. This casts a grim sbadow of doubt about the fairness of the trial itself and Kehar Singh’s son rightfully petitioned the Supreme Court of prove his father’s innocence and clear his name in the light of the new information provided by the Commission’s report.

The report has spent 213 pages out of 369 pages in pointing a needle of suspicion towards R.K. Dhawan personal assistant to Indira Gandhi and to whom present government has been trying very hard embarrassing revelations, Rajiv Gandhi lashed out at the opposition questioning their patriotism and accusing them of siding with the assassins of his mother. This speaks volumes for the political immaturity of the young Prime Minister and his utter disregard for the differing opinions of others.

The government wants people to believe that whatever it does or says is right and is in the national interest and those who dare to differ with it are unpatriotic and antinational. True to its old traditions of Indian politics, the American Central Investigation Agency is another suspect in the so-called conspiracy. However, CIA is powerful to be put on trial by Rajiv Gandhi, and hence, only other scapegoats are the prominent Sikh leaders who were vocal in their opposition to the shortsighted policies of the government in handling the Punjab crisis.

Either the government better come out with concrete evidence against those individuals who are being incriminated based on hearsay or mere circumstantial evidences as happened in the case of Kehar Singh or the Gandhi government would not only lose total credibility with the Sikh masses, but also would become suspect in the eyes of the majority of moderate and rational Indians, especially people in the majority Hindu community.

The most important question arise today why Rajiv Gandhi does not want to close the chapter of his mother’s assassination which is threatening to become the Watergate of India, especially when the judgment of the Supreme Court has already been carried out and take some new constructive steps to let the country move on to the path of progress. It does not take a genius to figure out that the basic problem is “kunsi” (seat of power) and for the sake of kursi, he wants to keep the story of his to shield. Stung by these political ; mother’s assassination alive and appeal to the emotions of the majority community to get enough votes for reelection to power again. I believe the majority of people of India are sick and tired of this political maneuvering and want to put an end to this bigotry.

Little does he and his advisors know what an enormous damage is being caused to long term unity and strength of the nation at the cost of spilling of innocent blood in Punjab and irreparable damage to the bonds of communal harmony which are so vital to the strength and vitality of the country. Those who believe that the reasonable demands of the 15 million strong Sikh community could be ignored and their aspirations suppressed by the use of the brutal force are living in a fools paradise. In the words of a senior Punjab official, “to the ordinary Sikh wanting to lead a normal life, the war against terrorists seem to have been turned into a war against Sikhs” (India Today, March 31, 1984) ”in order for the peace to prevail in Punjab, the feelings of injustice have to be removed from the minds of Sikhs” remarked L, K. Advani, a prominent Rightwing B.J.P. leader. This will need bold and concrete steps on the part of the national leadership. In his telegram to the Prime Minister published in Indian Express March 1, 1989, Ram Jethmalini, a famous lawyer and liberal politician of New Delhi, speculated “on account of the direction of his polices, the longer the Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi remains in office the nearer would be the possibility of creation of Khalistan.” The bungling of Thakkar Commission Report would further erode the confidence of the minorities, especially the Sikhs, in the Gandhi government and its democratic institutions, thus, further fueling the evolution of separatist movements.

Mohinder S. Poonia, M.D. Fresno, CA

Article extracted from this publication >>  May 12, 1989