The mandate of the Indian Constitution is justice: “economic, social and political”. Of all the things man seeks justice is among the first. The question of social organization, the problems of state and politics, all come down to the question of resolving the conflicts among men fairly and justly. All systems of governments and organizations of societies have tried to set up a machinery for justice which is fair to all. Indeed the very aim of a civilized state is to ensure justice to all its citizens. If a state fails to dispense justice, it is not correct to call it a civil state. Saint Augustine says it all, “What are great kingdoms but great robberies if justice is taken away from them.”
To delay justice is merely a strategy to deny justice. For the last 10 years victims of Delhi massacre are awaiting for justice. The killers have not been brought to trial inspite of the recommendations of the Delhi Chief Minister. Thousands of innocent Sikh men, women and children lost their lives in Delhi and other Congress- ruled states in the first week of November, 1984. Reports prepared by the human rights activists like Justices Tarkunde, Rajni Kothari and Justice S.M. Sikri, a former Chief Justice of India, have held that the massacre arson and loot were planned and betrayed a pattern. The prominent among the guilty were named and included H.K.L. Bhagat and Sajjan Kumar besides many police officials. The Khurana Government appointed a commission under the Chairmanship of Justice R.S. Narula, former Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court, soon after it was formed. The Narula Commission has recommended that report of Jain-Aggarwal committee be implemented. Inspite of Khurana Government’s earnest efforts, the Home Minister, has not taken any steps to bring culprits to justice. It is really ironic that even after 10 years the murderers are at large. According to a former DIG in 1984 he could not impose curfew or call in the army as he was forbidden to do so by PM’s house. From this it is quite evident that not only HKL Bhagat and Sajjan Kumar but the then PM and Home Minister had also something to do with the carnage.
People of Delhi had earlier, in history, suffered such carnage during the period of Allaudin Khilji and Nadir Shah. But November 1984 must rank as the most horrible as a minority community was singled out. Their homes were torched, women raped, and gurdwaras burnt. Earlier holocausts were not against one community, except in 1947 when in retaliation for killings of Hindus and Sikhs of West Punjab, the Muslim community of Delhi became the victims. In the Indian sub-continent there had. been other assassinations, of Mahatma Gandhi in January 1948, Liaqat Ali Khan, the first Prime Minister of Pakistan in 1951, Sheikh Mujeebur Rehman, President of Bangladesh, along with his wife and children, in August 1975. But the community of the assassin never became victims. It is only in case of the Sikhs that planned carnage was organized and no action taken against the guilty until today. In order to stop violent upsurge of people against tyrannical governments, Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the United Nation on 10th December, 1948. India is a signatory to it. The preamble of Declaration of Human Right reads: “Whereas it is essential, if man is not be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human right should be protected by the rule of law.”
The preamble of our Constitution also leaves no doubt as to aim and direction of the constitutional government: “We, the people of India, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a sovereign socialist secular democratic republic, and to secure to all its citizens.
Justice: social, economic and political, liberty of thought, expression, belief faith and worship.”
India today is facing armed insurgency ranging from Nasality militancy to ethnic-inspired armed struggles. One thing is common in all the disturbed areas, that justice was conspicuously lacking. The only reason for the state and the ruler to exist. is to deliver justice to its people. When state is unable to provide justice, people devise their own mechanism. It is time we listen to Emerson: “If the government is cruel the governor’s life is not safe. If you tax too high, the revenue yield nothing, if you make the criminal code sanguinary the juries will not convict. Nothing arbitrary nothing artificial can endure,” Undoubtedly the Delhi State Government has very limited powers, less than other states. But this blatant act of injustice is alienating the people of Punjab. The Sikhs have many patriotic credentials. They had opted for India and were against the partition. But due to long neglect by the Congress government they are embittered. The invasion of the Golden Temple by Indian Army was a historic blunder The reason given by the Indira Gandhi government was that it was essential to throw out the militants from the Golden Temple, though no list of the militants was ever given to SGPC for apprehending them. Indeed in the first week of May, 1984, Rajiv Gandhi had described Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale as a religious saint, yet he was riddled with bullets a month later. In fact operation Bluestar is the starting point of the Sikh alienation and the single most important factor for the rise of militancy leading to assassination of Mrs. Gandhi and the genocide unleashed on Sikhs in its wake. Sikhs have been waiting for justice ever since.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 3, 1995
