Resurgence of Khalistan threat must be suppressed

good in punjab Khalistani separatism may have been defeated but it has left behind a trail of violent, blood-soaked and painful memories. The disastrous Operation Blue Star, the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984 and the subsequent Pakistan-backed insurgency on which K.P.S. Gill and others took control in the 1980s. His wounds are so fresh they will reopen.

That’s exactly what seems to be happening. Amrit Pal Singh, the newly anointed chief of ‘Waris Punjab De’, a clean shaven youth living in Dubai, previously unknown, suddenly burst into limelight as another Jarnail Singh Bhindranwala. Recent clashes with police, the storming of the Ajnala police station and open threats to India’s top ruling party leaders are the latest examples of a rising tide of pro-Khalistani rhetoric.
In one of his broadcasts, Amrit Pal Singh warned, “If the government does not listen to our demands and release the Sikhs from jail, we will change course.” More violence is sure to follow. So far, both the state and central governments have done little to stop this deadly tide.

The latest uproar comes against the backdrop of a widespread belief that the Khalistani lobby is behind the Aam Aadmi Party’s electoral success in Punjab, riding on the winds of year-long farmers’ protests in Delhi. Along with this, Khalistani in Canada and Australia are intensifying their anti-India movement. Even the Australian Prime Minister concluded a highly publicized state visit to India during which he expressed concern over the increasing Khalistani attacks on Hindu temples in Australia.

India lost ground in Canada during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government led by Manmohan Singh. The Ontario legislature there also passed an anti-India resolution calling the 1984 anti-Sikh riots a ‘genocide’.
Neither our High Commission which must have seen written over the years nor the Indian community in such a large number could do anything to counter the Khalistanis. The latter incidentally has a large part of the Sikh vote bank in Canada which does not want to oppose the moderates in power.
The rise of similar anti-India terrorism in Australia is a matter of grave concern but what is different this time is that when it comes to Australia, both the government and the local community do not take things lightly.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed concern over the attacks on Hindu temples with his Albanian counterpart. Flash point Victoria is the state in which Melbourne is the largest city. The Khalistanis-led ‘Sikhs for Justice’ is organizing a referendum to create an independent state of Khalistan. The Khalistani map in circulation covers most of northern India from Punjab to U.P., Rajasthan, Kashmir, Haryana and Delhi. Famous for its absence are areas of Pakistan including Lahore, the then capital of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, and Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji. This points to the ‘Pakistani hand’ in doing the mischief. India’s diplomatic and strategic options are not limitless. Especially when their interests are being furthered in democratic and open societies. Anti-India and anti-social elements often flourish under the guise of freedom of speech and other legal protections. This has been the experience in the past during the peak of the Khalistani movement. It looks like history is repeating itself once again.

The attacks, vandalism and vandalism of Hindu temples in Australia are a timely attempt to create enmity between Hindus and Sikhs. During the Khalistani unrest, many Hindus were pulled out of buses and gunned down. Now Hindu temples are being attacked. In the broader cultural and civilizational scene, Sikh separatism, both religious and secular, has already gone too far to be easily corrected.
What is needed is to free Sikhs from fundamentalism in India and abroad. However, for this all concerned parties will have to keep politics aside keeping in mind the national interest. Unfortunately this is not likely to happen. Given that Indian politics today is akin to a war situation. There is a non-compromising enmity between the ruling BJP and the opposition.
India’s enemies may realize that India is a mighty country that cannot be defeated, let alone undermined easily. unless it chooses to remain inactive and internally divided as was the case earlier.
Amritpal and his associates cannot be allowed to run a parallel administration using religious rhetoric to inflame passions. India must lock down hostile Khalistani operatives using all administrative, diplomatic, economic strategic and military means at its control. We have to once again increase India’s attractiveness at home and abroad. (Thanks I.E.)

Makarand R. Paranjape