Jagmohan Singh Raju
It was an act of a greater recklessness on part of PM Indira Gandhi than even the declaration of Emergency
Tremors of Operation Blue Star (OBS), the army action executed on the orders of prime minister Indira Gandhi in the first week of June 1984, continue to torment the Sikh community and the national conscience till date. The operation was supposedly ordered to flush out alleged secessionists and outlaws who had taken shelter in Sri Harmandir Sahib, the holiest shrine of Sikhs. In my view Operation Blue Star was a historic blunder regardless of
the reason.
Benefits of the operation have proved to be much costlier than the anticipated cost of its avoidance. I believe OBS was an act of a greater recklessness on part of PM Gandhi than even the declaration of Emergency in 1975, since it fractured fraternity, alienated the entire Sikh community from the establishment, and created a deep divide between Hindus and Sikhs.
In any case, certain things are beyond the realm of cost-benefit considerations. OBS ought not to have been allowed at any cost, circumstances irrespective. Sikhs alone do not prescribe to this viewpoint. Some of the most prominent Hindu leaders are also of the same opinion.
OBS was unique in the history of independent India in more than one way. It was for the first time that a religious shrine became the focus of Army action. In the OBS, tank fire had smashed Sri Akal Takht Sahib and the excessive use of force, according to media reports, left between five to seven thousand men and women dead.
OBS not only caused a large number of deaths during the operation but also became the root-cause of the massacre of Sikhs in November 1984 riots and the black decade of killings and turmoil in Punjab thereafter. This chain of events demonised Sikhs as separatists (Khalastanis) and left them completely outraged and estranged.
But there was silver lining too. A year after the OBS, I had got selected in the IAS and was allocated to Tamil Nadu. There I had the opportunity to visit Kanchi Kamakoti Muth. The Muth enjoys highest veneration of Hindus as it was founded by Adi Shankaracharya and he lived here for long.
Spotting a turbaned Sikh, the Head of the Muth, Jagadguru Shri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati ji, one of the most influential spiritual leaders of his time, called me aside and enquired about the situation in Punjab. Then in a poignant tone he told me that Operation Blue Star should have never taken place and how pained he was over the killing of Sikhs in the operation. Shankaracharya had also asked me to offer prayer at Harmandir Sahib for the departed souls. I had taken a Sankalp in my mind to perform Akand Path at Sri Akal Takht Sahib for the peace of the departed souls. Circumstances, however, did not enable this resolve to be fulfilled. But this year, on the 38th anniversary of the OBS, with the blessings of Guru Ram Dasji I could organise Akhand Path and Ardas at Sri Akal Takht Sahib.
Operation Blue Star, in my opinion, was a completely avoidable national tragedy. The onus of preventing the operation lay squarely on PM Indira Gandhi. Swayed by electoral considerations, she miserably failed in her national duty. By the admission of her own colleagues like Natwar Singh, OBS was perhaps her biggest mistake, bigger than even the Emergency.
But Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, and later Smt. Indira Gandhi, for decades failed to resolve the basic demands of Punjab including transfer of Chandigarh, Punjab's capital, to Punjab, river water distribution and transferring of Punjabi speaking areas to Punjab.
How do Sikhs address the residual trauma inflicted by Operation Blue Star? Should they forget and move on? In this regard, there is something to learn from other religious communities. Almost 2,000 years after its destruction, this is how the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple is made to remain present in the imagination and imagery of the Jews, generation after generation. I was also told that since centuries, the destruction of their Holy Temple is mourned by the Jews collectively on Tisha B'Av. This day is considered the saddest day on the Jewish calendar when Jews abjure eating of meat or drinking of wine or any other indulgence; they only mourn, fast, and pray.
I am, therefore, of the firm conviction that Sikhs may forgive but must not ever forget the devastation of the Harmandir Sahib suffered during OBS. It was no accident of history. It occurred because of PM Indira Gandhi's insensitivity, indifference, and lack of empathy. It is our moral duty and national imperative to prevent such human disasters in the future. Learning from the past is the best way of prevention.
It is, therefore, our shared responsibility to keep alive the memory of the past and of all those who suffered. Ardas in Sikhism institutionalises collective community memorisation of Sikh history and maintaining effective remembrance of those who endured sufferings for the sake of the faith. Let Operation Blue Star be part of the Sikh Ardas and let us all pray that no one suffers such violence and agony ever again.
(The author, a retired IAS officer, is a politician. The views expressed are personal.)
