AMRITSAR, India: Punjab’s battle hardened “bullet for bullet” police Chief Julio Francis Ribeiro have a new enemy: a band of Sikh women have vowed to fight his relentless campaign against their militant “brothers”.
“We have unanimously decided to jump into the battlefield of war being waged by Ribeiro against our Sikh brothers”, said a press release issued Friday by a newly formed group called Mai Bhago Regiment.
“The group is named after a woman warrior in Sikh history and was formed at a secret meeting in Amritsar earlier this week,” said the release delivered at newspaper offices by two Sikh women riding a motor cycle.
The group expressed its determination to pose a strong challenge to Mr. Ribeiro, who took charge of the Indian Government’s fight against the Sikh freedom fighters in May with a hardline pledge to match Sikh freedom fighters’ “bullet for bullet”.
The Group will be led by Gen. Bhag Kaur, who will be assisted by Lt. Gen, Harsharan Kaur and Major General Deep Kaur, all names of famous women warriors drawn from Sikh history. Mr. Ribeiro, known in India for his ruthless fake police encounters, is high on a well published hit list drawn up by the militants fighting for the secession of Punjab and formation of a separate Sikh nation; He escaped an attempt on his life recently.
Punjab police under Mr. Ribeiro have been charged with killing innocent Sikhs in stage managed ‘encounters’ on suspicion that they were militants, Police have recently received intelligence reports indicating that Young Sikh women are joining militant groups.
Article extracted from this publication >> November 14, 1986
