CHANDIGARH: Indian Intelligence reports from the border areas: have warned of a spurt in militant activity in the northern states, particularly in Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, as the large scale deployment of Army in Punjab in the next for might will force the militants to sneak into the neighboring areas

According to these reports, the militant’s primary targets will be leaders of the Congress and the BIP in these states.

The Himachal government is learning have asked the home ministers for more security force police to meet the threat.

Soon after the militant strike in Sirsa, in which 16 persons were Killed, the Haryana director-general of police and he Chandigarh police chief held a long meeting with the Punjab governor and other senior officials to chalk out a joint strategy.

The senior officers of the Haryana police feel with the deployment of Army in Punjab, the situation is ripe for initiating a join operation against the militants who will not like to have a direct confrontation with the Army. Instead of holding meetings with the governors and chief ministers, they feel, the police chiefs of adjoining districts in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh should stay in touch to share information regarding the militants.

They also feel that the security forces in those Haryana districts which border Punjab should take the Sikh population into control they argue: are fed up with the activities of the militants.

Significantly there has been no backlash against the Sikhs in Haryana after the Sirsa incident. Instead, Hindus provided protection to Sikhs, fearing mischief by the antisocial elements. A Sikh youth, Jagdev Singh, who grappled with the militants and laid down his life, has become a symbol of Hindu Sikh unity, not only for Sirsa but for the entire state.

Although the opposition leaders, like Bansi Lal and Sampat Singh, allege that the state governments not fully alive to the militant threat, the chief minister, Bhajan Lal, had already initiated a dialogue with the Sikh leaders in the state to get familiar with their problems, He has refuted Bansi Lal at allegation that the police have been harassing some Sikh families. Tribune)

Article extracted from this publication >> November 22, 1991