Jarnail Singh Bhindranwala: A Curse or a Blessing? A Holy Cow or a Wild Bull?

From Religious Revival to Political Militancy: Understanding Punjab's Tragedy and Preparing for the Future

Let us move beyond shooting star, Blue star, Satluj, and Harike to "Freedom and Justice Forever", through "Power to People"

"ਕੂੜੁ ਨਿਖੁਟੇ ਨਾਨਕਾ, ਓੜਕਿ ਸਚਿ ਰਹੀ"
("Falsehood will exhaust itself, O Nanak, and truth will ultimately prevail.")

More than four decades have passed since that fateful June when the Indian Army was ordered to enter the holiest shrine of the Sikh faith. Yet, with the arrival of every June, the Sikh community once again relives one of the most painful chapters of its modern history. It has become a month of remembrance, grief, unanswered questions, competing narratives, and renewed emotional debate. Each year, new eyewitness accounts emerge, old memories are revisited, and familiar arguments are repeated. Selective truths are highlighted, inconvenient facts are forgotten, and history is often molded to fit preconceived conclusions or the larger-than-life image of "Santji."

Over the years, so many distortions, exaggerations, omissions, and selective narratives have accumulated that separating historical reality from emotional memory has become increasingly difficult. Communities, however, do not benefit from myths, whether they are created by admirers or critics. They benefit from an honest examination of history. The present generation deserves a transparent opportunity to understand how this monumental tragedy unfolded—not merely how it ended.

This article is neither an indictment nor a defense of any individual, organization, or government. It is an attempt to understand the sequence of events, decisions, perceptions, and institutional failures that gradually transformed political and religious disagreements into one of the greatest tragedies in modern Punjab. My purpose is not to reopen old wounds but to encourage critical reflection so that future generations may avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.

Many people have written books on Punjab. Many have written memoirs. Many have advanced political arguments. Very few have attempted to explain how an entire society gradually drifted into catastrophe. Punjab's tragedy did not erupt overnight, nor was it the inevitable consequence of one individual, one organization, or one government. It emerged through a succession of decisions made by political leaders, religious authorities, administrators, militants, governments, and ordinary citizens over several years. Each decision narrowed the space for dialogue and widened the scope for confrontation. The ultimate victims were neither institutions nor ideologies, but ordinary families whose lives were irreversibly altered.

This, therefore, is not merely an article about 1984. It is not simply an article about Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. Nor is it solely an article about Operation Blue Star. Those are the events around which the narrative revolves. The article itself is about something much larger. It is about the relationship between truth, power, memory, democracy, and the responsibility of future generations to learn from history rather than become imprisoned by it.

History is rarely shaped by saints or monsters alone. More often, it is shaped by ordinary people making extraordinary decisions under pressure, with incomplete information, competing loyalties, and deeply held convictions—sometimes wisely, sometimes disastrously. Understanding is neither forgiveness nor agreement. It is the willingness to ask, "How did this happen?" before asking, "Who should we blame?"

A prosecution begins with a conclusion and then searches for evidence to support it. History begins with evidence and allows the reader to reach a conclusion. Readers are therefore free to disagree with my conclusions, but I invite them to examine the evidence, question every assumption—including my own—and judge history not by emotion alone, but by its long-term consequences.

History is a patient judge. It neither applauds slogans nor condemns emotions. It measures leaders, governments, movements, and institutions by what they ultimately leave behind. Every generation inherits the consequences of decisions made by those who came before it. Whether those consequences become wisdom or recurring tragedy depends upon the courage to examine history honestly. This article is offered in that spirit—not to preserve old certainties, but to encourage thoughtful inquiry, informed debate, and a future built upon understanding rather than memory alone.

If history serves any purpose, it is to illuminate the path ahead. The greatest tribute we can pay to those who suffered is not to preserve their divisions, but to preserve the lessons their suffering can teach future generations.

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The Intoxicating Nature of Power

History teaches us that the most intoxicating substance known to humankind is not alcohol or opium—it is power. Unlike any other intoxicant, power does not merely cloud the senses; it intoxicates judgment. It convinces its possessor that popularity is proof of wisdom, applause is evidence of righteousness, and followers are a substitute for accountability.

Power creates an illusion of invincibility and superior moral authority. Reason gradually gives way to arrogance, prudence yields to recklessness, and criticism comes to be viewed as hostility rather than an opportunity for self-correction. History repeatedly demonstrates that leaders who begin by believing they speak for their people often end by believing that they alone are the people. Once that transformation occurs, dissent becomes betrayal, moderation becomes weakness, and compromise becomes surrender. It is at this stage that movements become most vulnerable to tragedy.

Communities do not lose their freedom in a single day. They lose it gradually when emotion begins to replace reason, institutions become weaker than personalities, and citizens surrender their independent judgment to charismatic leaders. The greatest tragedy of Punjab was not merely the loss of thousands of lives; it was the gradual triumph of emotion over reason, personalities over institutions, and confrontation over democratic reform.

Every leader who aspires to establish himself as the voice of a community requires a powerful issue around which public opinion can be mobilized. Throughout the Indian subcontinent, political and religious leadership has often been built upon the perception that a community's identity, faith, or very existence stands threatened. Whether those threats are real, exaggerated, or imagined, they possess enormous emotional power. Once fear begins to replace reason, polarization becomes easier than dialogue.

History repeatedly follows a familiar progression:

• A religious disagreement becomes a public controversy.
• Public controversy becomes political mobilization.
• Political mobilization becomes polarization.
• Polarization breeds fear.
• Fear legitimizes violence.
• Violence invites militarization.
• Militarization leaves behind trauma.
• Trauma eventually becomes memory.

The story of Punjab during the late 1970s and early 1980s followed this tragic sequence with remarkable precision.

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From a Shooting Star to Blue Star

A shooting star often appears to the observer as a brilliant new star crossing the heavens, inspiring awe and inviting wishes. In reality, it is merely a tiny fragment of dust entering the Earth's atmosphere, producing an intense but short-lived blaze before disappearing forever.

The political rise of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale followed a remarkably similar trajectory.

Until April 13, 1978, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwala was largely unknown to the wider Sikh community. Outside the immediate circle of his followers in the Damdami Taksal—a traditional Sikh seminary that itself remained unfamiliar to much of the ordinary Sikh population—few had even heard his name. He had assumed leadership of the Taksal on August 25, 1977, following the sudden death of Sant Kartar Singh Khalsa in a road accident.

Having inherited the leadership of the Taksal, Bhindranwala required an issue capable of transforming a relatively obscure religious institution into a mass movement. He found that issue in his opposition to the Sant Nirankari Mission.

Running parallel to his emergence was the rapid rise of Bhai Amrik Singh, the son of the late Sant Kartar Singh Bhindranwale, to the presidency of the All India Sikh Students Federation (AISSF). This development would prove equally significant. Bhai Amrik Singh brought to the movement a disciplined, educated, energetic, and highly mobilized student organization that complemented Bhindranwala's religious platform. Together, these two centres of influence increasingly reinforced one another. What began as theological disagreement gradually evolved into organized political mobilization and, eventually, into an atmosphere of growing confrontation.

Their combined influence accelerated a cycle that neither Punjab nor the Sikh community would be able to control. What initially appeared to be a dispute over religious doctrine slowly expanded into a broader political struggle, creating an environment in which fear, suspicion, and polarization steadily replaced dialogue and democratic engagement.

The Language of Confrontation

The Sant Nirankari Mission had established a substantial following by drawing inspiration from the Guru Granth Sahib. Their principal divergence from mainstream Sikh doctrine lay in one fundamental belief: they accepted the authority of a living human spiritual guide. Bhindranwala strongly opposed this doctrine, maintaining that spiritual authority rested exclusively with the Guru Granth Sahib. What began as a theological disagreement, however, gradually transcended the realm of religious discourse and entered the sphere of public confrontation.

Religious differences, by themselves, need not produce violence. Throughout history, communities have coexisted despite profound doctrinal disagreements. Tragedy begins when theological disputes are transformed into questions of collective honor, identity, and survival. Once that transformation occurs, reasoned dialogue steadily gives way to emotional mobilization.

The confrontation reached a decisive turning point during the Nirankari convention at Amritsar on Vaisakhi Day, April 13, 1978. What should have remained an ideological disagreement erupted into a violent clash, leaving several people dead and many others injured. The incident profoundly altered Punjab's political and religious landscape. It became the emotional catalyst upon which subsequent events would build.

Bhindranwala possessed qualities that made him an exceptionally effective mass communicator. He was quick-witted, fearless in public debate, blessed with an imposing presence, and gifted with a remarkable ability to connect with rural audiences. He spoke in the language of ordinary people rather than political elites. His speeches blended genuine public grievances—police excesses, corruption, perceived discrimination by the Centre, unemployment, and the frustrations of everyday life—with emotionally charged religious symbolism. This combination proved extraordinarily powerful.

Many ordinary Sikhs found in him a leader who appeared willing to articulate their grievances without fear. His growing popularity cannot be understood merely through his religious preaching; it must also be understood against the backdrop of widespread political dissatisfaction and declining public confidence in existing leadership. Charismatic personalities often emerge most rapidly when established institutions fail to command public trust.

Yet charisma carries its own dangers.

Ironically, while many followers revered him as a Sant, the language he increasingly employed against his opponents departed markedly from the humility and restraint traditionally associated with spiritual leadership. He publicly referred to the Nirankari head Gurbachan Singh as "Bachnaa" and habitually addressed Prime Minister Indira Gandhi as "Baahmani." Such expressions may have energized devoted followers, but they also contributed to an atmosphere in which disagreement became increasingly personalized and contempt replaced debate.

Language shapes public behaviour. Once adversaries cease to be viewed as fellow citizens with differing opinions and instead become enemies, traitors, or enemies of the faith, compromise becomes almost impossible. Words gradually prepare the ground upon which actions follow. Political polarization rarely begins with weapons; it begins with language.

The atmosphere in Punjab steadily changed. Public meetings became more emotionally charged. Religious identity became increasingly intertwined with political identity. Every confrontation attracted larger audiences, wider publicity, and deeper polarization. Moderate voices found themselves squeezed between increasingly uncompromising positions. As moderation retreated, extremism acquired greater visibility.

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The Intoxication of Power and the Normalization of Violence

Power rarely reveals its dangers at the moment it is acquired. Its most profound effects emerge gradually. The applause of supporters, the loyalty of followers, and the repeated confirmation of one's own righteousness can slowly create an illusion of infallibility. Leaders begin believing that extraordinary circumstances justify extraordinary methods, while followers become convinced that extraordinary leaders stand above ordinary standards.

Many admirers continue to portray Bhindranwala primarily as a peaceful religious preacher, often pointing out that no formal conviction was ever secured against him. Yet historical evaluation cannot rest solely upon courtroom outcomes. It must also examine patterns of conduct, public statements, the encouragement of followers, and the broader consequences of leadership.

Police investigations and contemporary records present a far more complex and troubling picture than later mythology often acknowledges.

The assassination of Lala Jagat Narain, the founder-editor of the Hind Samachar Group and one of Bhindranwala's most outspoken critics, on September 9, 1981, marked a decisive escalation. According to police investigations, the assassination was carried out by Bhindranwala's nephew, Swaran Singh, assisted by Nacchatar Singh and Dalbir Singh. Whether viewed through judicial, political, or historical lenses, the assassination demonstrated that political disagreement had crossed into targeted violence.

Equally significant was the gradual normalization of summary justice. Violence increasingly came to be portrayed not merely as understandable but as admirable. Acts that would previously have been condemned began to receive public praise.

This transformation became particularly evident after the assassination of Baba Gurbachan Singh, the head of the Sant Nirankari Mission, in Delhi. The killing itself was independently carried out by Bhai Ranjit Singh, who at that time had no organizational connection with the Damdami Taksal. Yet Bhindranwala publicly declared that whenever he met Ranjit Singh, he would "weigh him in gold."

The symbolic importance of such statements extended far beyond the individual incident. Public approval of political assassination conveyed a powerful message to impressionable followers: violence undertaken in defence of the faith deserved honour rather than condemnation. Among many politically frustrated and emotionally charged young men, such rhetoric created an intoxicating sense of purpose and heroism.

Leadership carries immense moral responsibility. Words spoken by influential figures rarely remain mere words. They shape perceptions, establish moral boundaries, and influence behaviour. When violence begins receiving public admiration, the threshold for future violence inevitably becomes lower.

Punjab was now entering a phase in which isolated acts of confrontation were giving way to an organized cycle of retaliation. Each incident generated another. Every killing produced fresh anger. Every funeral became another platform for mobilization. Every political compromise appeared to one side as a weakness and to the other as a betrayal.

Gradually, a dangerous perception also began taking root among supporters—that Bhindranwala stood beyond the reach of the law. Repeated political hesitation, inconsistent administrative action, and failed attempts at decisive intervention unintentionally reinforced that perception. Every unsuccessful arrest, every withdrawal by the authorities, and every political accommodation strengthened the belief that ordinary legal standards no longer applied.

The consequences would soon become visible across Punjab.

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The Descent into the Abyss (1980–1984)

Punjab's tragedy did not emerge from a single dramatic event. It unfolded one incident at a time.

Political rivalries, factional struggles, electoral calculations, militant activism, administrative failures, and repeated governmental indecision combined to create an environment in which violence steadily replaced constitutional politics. The Dharam Yudh Morcha, originally conceived as a constitutional and political agitation, gradually became overshadowed by militant rhetoric and armed activism. The distinction between political protest and organized violence became increasingly blurred.

The state's descent into crisis can best be understood chronologically.

On April 24, 1980, Baba Gurbachan Singh, the head of the Sant Nirankari Mission, was assassinated in Delhi. Although investigative agencies took note of Bhindranwala's public instigations, political considerations and administrative hesitation prevented decisive legal action. The opportunity to establish the primacy of the rule of law was lost at a crucial moment.

Later that year, rural Punjab witnessed an increasing number of armed bank robberies. These were not ordinary criminal offences motivated merely by financial gain. Many were carried out to procure weapons, ammunition, vehicles, and logistical support for emerging militant networks. Violence was becoming organized.

On September 9, 1981, Lala Jagat Narain was assassinated near Ludhiana, sending shockwaves throughout the country. The murder deepened communal anxieties and intensified political polarization.

The government's response culminated in Bhindranwala's surrender at Mehta Chowk on September 20, 1981. What should have been a routine legal process instead turned into a major political spectacle. Violent clashes erupted between his supporters and security forces, causing multiple deaths. Rather than diminishing his influence, the episode dramatically enhanced his stature among followers, transforming him in the eyes of many from a religious preacher into a heroic symbol of resistance.

The very next day, September 21, 1981, motorcycle-borne gunmen indiscriminately opened fire in a crowded market at Jalandhar, killing innocent Hindu civilians. The attack struck at the heart of Punjab's long tradition of communal coexistence, sowing fear and suspicion between communities that had lived together peacefully for generations.

Only days later, on September 29, 1981, militants hijacked an Indian Airlines aircraft to Lahore, demanding Bhindranwala's immediate release.

These events demonstrated that the conflict had entered an entirely new phase. Violence was no longer episodic. It had become organized, coordinated, and increasingly political.

The Escalation: From Political Agitation to Organized Violence

The period immediately following Bhindranwala's arrest demonstrated how rapidly Punjab's political climate had changed. During his brief periods of custody, the All India Sikh Students Federation (AISSF) intensified its campaign of demonstrations, bombings, and targeted killings. Rather than distancing himself from these acts, Bhindranwala increasingly shielded those accused of violence, publicly proclaiming that anyone who joined his jatha would remain beyond the reach of the law.

Whether intended as rhetoric or policy, such declarations had profound psychological consequences. They fostered among many followers a sense of immunity, while simultaneously eroding public confidence in the state's capacity to enforce the rule of law. Every successful act of intimidation encouraged another. Every failure of the administration strengthened the perception that the government had lost both initiative and authority.

The political establishment's repeated attempts to accommodate competing pressures did not calm the situation; they inadvertently intensified it. Every failed arrest, every political compromise, and every administrative retreat strengthened the public perception that Bhindranwala occupied a position above ordinary legal accountability. Gradually, objective facts became less important than symbolic power. Supporters increasingly viewed him not simply as a religious leader but as a defender of Sikh honour. Critics increasingly viewed him as the principal architect of escalating violence. Between these opposing perceptions, space for reasoned public discourse steadily disappeared.

History repeatedly demonstrates that once personalities begin overshadowing institutions, democratic societies become vulnerable. Institutions derive their legitimacy from consistent application of law; personalities derive theirs from public emotion. The more one expands, the more the other contracts.

Punjab was now witnessing precisely that transformation.

The tragedy did not arise because one individual became influential. Democracies regularly produce charismatic leaders. The tragedy emerged because institutions gradually became weaker than personalities, allowing emotional mobilization to replace constitutional processes. What should have remained a contest of ideas increasingly became a contest of symbols.

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The Failure of Democratic Institutions

Violence rarely flourishes in a political vacuum. It grows where institutions lose public confidence, where governments appear indecisive, where justice is perceived to be selective, and where competing political interests repeatedly postpone difficult decisions.

Punjab during the early 1980s presented precisely such an environment.

The rivalry between political parties, internal divisions within the Akali leadership, electoral calculations by the ruling establishment, inconsistent administrative responses, and growing public frustration combined to produce a crisis that no single institution appeared capable of controlling. Each stakeholder sought tactical advantage, yet few seemed willing—or able—to address the deeper structural causes of growing alienation.

The Dharam Yudh Morcha itself began as a constitutional movement intended to press political and federal demands. Its declared objectives lay within democratic politics. Over time, however, constitutional agitation increasingly became overshadowed by armed militancy. The distinction between peaceful political protest and organized violence became progressively blurred, making it more difficult for both the public and the administration to distinguish legitimate political grievances from extremist objectives.

Meanwhile, ordinary citizens found themselves trapped between competing forces. Many Sikhs genuinely believed that legitimate grievances regarding federal relations, discrimination, water sharing, language, and regional autonomy deserved serious constitutional consideration. At the same time, many Hindus increasingly feared the growing normalization of violence and the apparent inability of the state to protect innocent lives.

Fear became reciprocal.

Each community interpreted events primarily through the lens of its own suffering. Each became increasingly susceptible to political narratives that reinforced existing anxieties. Mutual trust, painstakingly built over generations, gradually began to erode.

History teaches that societies rarely collapse because one side alone abandons moderation. Collapse occurs when moderation loses credibility across the political spectrum.

The greatest casualty during this period was public confidence itself.

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A Memory That Refuses to Fade

Many years later, while researching this subject for my book, I experienced an incident that continues to shape my own understanding of Punjab's complex history.

One evening in 2014, I telephoned Mr. Birbal Nath, a retired IPS officer who had served as the Director General of Punjab Police during the turbulent years between 1980 and 1982. He had personally supervised many of the most critical operations during those difficult years and had been directly responsible for Bhindranwala's arrest.

By then, he was nearly ninety years of age.

Throughout our conversation, he referred to Bhindranwala naturally, consistently, and almost instinctively as "Santji."

There was no hesitation. No conscious effort. The honorific emerged as though it remained permanently embedded in memory.

That conversation revealed something far deeper than personal habit. It illustrated how profoundly Bhindranwala's image had become interwoven within Punjab's political and administrative consciousness. Even those entrusted with enforcing the law had lived through a period in which religious authority, political symbolism, and administrative responsibility had become extraordinarily difficult to separate.

History often leaves behind not only physical scars but linguistic ones as well.

That single conversation reminded me that understanding Punjab requires far more than assigning blame. It requires understanding how competing narratives became so deeply rooted that even decades later they continue to shape language, memory, and identity.

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A Tale of Two Leaders

The contrast presented by history is striking.

Pre-independence India produced a Mahatma—a British-trained Barrister-at-Law possessing extraordinary experience in constitutional politics, mass mobilization, negotiation, and statecraft. Mahatma Gandhi attempted to confront one of the world's greatest empires through disciplined non-violence. Yet even with his remarkable understanding of public psychology, the British colonial administration successfully exploited communal divisions, culminating in one of the bloodiest partitions in modern history.

Post-British Punjab, by contrast, produced a Sant—a charismatic rural preacher possessing immense personal influence but little exposure to constitutional governance, economics, public administration, or the complexities of modern statecraft. His appeal rested not upon institutional reform but upon emotionally charged religious rhetoric and uncompromising resistance.

The comparison is not intended to diminish either individual. Rather, it highlights two fundamentally different approaches to leadership.

One sought to transform society through institutions, constitutional struggle, and disciplined mass politics.

The other increasingly became associated with confrontation, emotional mobilization, and the growing acceptance of organized violence as an instrument of political change.

History ultimately judges leaders not merely by their intentions, slogans, or popularity, but by the long-term consequences of their leadership upon their people.

Intentions may inspire followers.

Outcomes shape history.

The question, therefore, is not whether Bhindranwala sincerely believed he was defending Sikh interests. Many of his followers remain convinced that he did. The more important historical question is whether the methods adopted, the atmosphere created, and the consequences that followed ultimately strengthened or weakened the Sikh community.

It is this question—not emotion, not mythology, and not political loyalty—that history invites every generation to examine.

The Ultimate Price and the Point of No Return

By the summer of 1984, Punjab had reached a point from which there appeared to be no peaceful return.

Years of political indecision, mounting militancy, administrative failures, mutual distrust, and escalating violence had steadily narrowed every avenue for constitutional resolution. The atmosphere that had begun with theological disagreement in 1978 had evolved into a full-scale political, social, and security crisis. Each assassination had invited retaliation. Each retaliation had deepened fear. Each failed political initiative had further weakened public confidence in democratic institutions.

Ultimately, violence consumed many of those who had helped create it.

In June 1984, Bhindranwala lost his life during the Indian Army's assault on the Golden Temple complex. Operation Blue Star left deep and enduring wounds upon the Sikh psyche. The Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikh authority, suffered devastating damage. Thousands of pilgrims, residents, militants, soldiers, and innocent civilians became victims of circumstances that had been years in the making.

For millions of Sikhs across the world, the military action represented not merely a security operation but an assault upon the community's deepest religious sentiments. Images of tanks entering the sacred complex and the destruction inflicted upon the Akal Takht became permanently etched into Sikh collective memory. Those images continue to shape perceptions more than four decades later.

Yet Operation Blue Star did not conclude Punjab's tragedy.

It merely marked the beginning of another.

The assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by two of her Sikh bodyguards on October 31, 1984, unleashed an even greater catastrophe. Organized anti-Sikh massacres erupted across Delhi and many other parts of India. Thousands of innocent Sikhs were murdered. Homes, businesses, and Gurdwaras were looted and burned. Countless families were permanently displaced. Confidence in the state's ability to protect its own citizens suffered irreparable damage.

The cycle of revenge had not become complete; it had just begun afresh in the streets, in the green fields, on the banks of rivers, in the depths of canals, at the intersections and bridges in the form of fake encounters and retaliatory violence against the symbols of authority and power, and brought a fresh wave, where Sikhs got pitted against Sikhs. The Punjab Police, which was spearheading law and order in Punjab, comprised 90% Sikh frontline police officers. Sikhs have historically embodied a rare and formidable combination of dedication, determination, courage, and an extraordinary spirit of sacrifice. Under particular circumstances and in a particular environment, this collective character has often manifested itself spontaneously—without directions from any individual leader or the support of an organized structure. It is this deeply ingrained moral conviction and sense of duty that has repeatedly enabled ordinary individuals to undertake extraordinary acts.

History is replete with instances of Sikh individuals who, driven by conscience and an uncompromising commitment to justice, accepted the ultimate sacrifice in the face of oppression. Acting on their own conviction rather than under organizational direction, they held the perpetrators of injustice accountable, often at the cost of their own lives. This enduring tradition of personal responsibility, moral courage, and selfless sacrifice has remained one of the defining characteristics of the Sikh ethos throughout history. In India’s freedom movement, 87% of those who were sent to the gallows by British colonial rulers were Sikhs. Sardar Udham Singh avenged the Jallianwala Bagh massacre after 18 years of diligent struggle and commitment to his own conviction, single-handedly. And completely in accordance with that spirit of Sikhi, individuals embarked upon the journey of making perpetrators accountable, from Indira Gandhi to Arjun Dass, Ajay Maken, to AS Vaidya, Army Chief, from Rebeiro, police chief, to Govind Ram, police superintendent, and numerous others were made accountable as a community response, but by individuals. The likes of KPS Gill lived the life of potential prey, holed up in a rat hole under fear, under immense security, until their natural death.

Under such circumstances, the politicians, bureaucrats, and community leaders had never anticipated how this would spiral out of control and consume the lives of everyone who tried to handle or subdue it.

Violence had produced more violence.

Hatred had produced greater hatred.

The decade that followed witnessed widespread militancy, counter-insurgency operations, extrajudicial killings, disappearances, torture, human rights violations, and the gradual erosion of public trust in almost every institution of the state. Punjab became trapped between militant violence and state violence, with ordinary citizens paying the highest price.

History repeatedly reminds us that violence rarely remains confined to its original authors. Once released into society, it acquires a momentum of its own. It ultimately consumes supporters and opponents alike.

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Measuring Leadership by Consequences

Every generation faces the temptation to judge leaders by their intentions rather than by the consequences of their leadership.

Intentions are important.

Sincerity deserves respect.

Sacrifice deserves acknowledgment.

But history cannot stop there.

History asks a more difficult question.

What did that leadership ultimately leave behind?

When measured by long-term outcomes rather than immediate emotions, Punjab's historical ledger presents sobering conclusions.

Punjab's once-flourishing economy suffered enormous damage.

Investment declined.

Industry stagnated.

Agriculture, though resilient, struggled under prolonged instability.

Thousands of educated young men either lost their lives, disappeared, remained imprisoned, or emigrated abroad, creating a profound social and intellectual vacuum.

The political influence of the Sikh community within national politics diminished rather than expanded.

The atmosphere of fear weakened civil society.

Families were divided.

Communities that had coexisted peacefully for generations increasingly viewed one another through suspicion.

Perhaps most strikingly, the highly centralized political and administrative system against which so much anger had been directed remained fundamentally unchanged.

The structures inherited from the British Raj continued largely intact.

The police system remained centralized.

The criminal justice system remained cumbersome.

Administrative accountability remained weak.

The concentration of power within governmental institutions remained largely unaffected.

In other words, the immense sacrifices made by countless ordinary people did not produce the structural transformation that many had hoped for.

This observation does not diminish individual courage, nor does it question the sincerity of those who believed they were defending their faith or community. Rather, it raises an essential historical question that every society must eventually confront:

Can noble intentions alone justify strategies whose long-term consequences leave the community weaker than before?

History ultimately judges leaders not by the passion they inspire, but by the condition in which they leave their people.

Popularity fades.

Slogans fade.

Emotion fades.

Consequences remain.

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What Future Generations Must Learn

The most important question arising from Punjab's tragedy is not who deserves the greatest blame. History seldom offers such simple answers. Political leaders made mistakes. Governments made mistakes. Religious authorities made mistakes. Administrators made mistakes. Militant organizations made mistakes. Intellectuals, journalists, and sections of civil society also made mistakes.

The tragedy emerged not from one decision but from the cumulative effect of many decisions, each narrowing opportunities for peaceful resolution.

If future generations focus only upon assigning blame, they risk repeating precisely the same mistakes.

The more valuable question is this:

What should future generations learn?

First, communities should resist the temptation to elevate personalities above institutions.

Institutions are designed to restrain power. Personalities often accumulate it. When institutions become subordinate to individuals, accountability steadily disappears. Second, emotional mobilization can never substitute for coherent political vision. Mass enthusiasm may create movements. Only strong institutions create lasting justice. Third, democratic grievances deserve democratic solutions. Every society contains genuine grievances. Ignoring them breeds frustration. But allowing violence to become their principal language ultimately destroys the very communities whose interests it claims to defend. Fourth, leaders should ultimately be judged not only by their stated intentions but by the long-term consequences of their leadership. History asks not what leaders promised. History asks what they ultimately achieved. Finally, history should never become a shrine. It should remain a teacher. Communities that transform history into sacred memory often become prisoners of their past. Communities that study history critically acquire the wisdom necessary to shape their future.

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From Shrines to Structural Reform

History shows that during periods of profound uncertainty, societies become particularly vulnerable to charismatic personalities who promise immediate dignity, instant justice, and emotional certainty. Such leaders often emerge because genuine grievances exist. Their popularity itself should never be dismissed. It reflects real frustrations that deserve careful attention.

Yet history also demonstrates that enduring freedom has never been secured by personalities alone.

It has always depended upon institutions.

The true challenge facing the Sikh community today is therefore not simply the memory of one individual or one military operation. It is the persistence of centralized, opaque, and often unaccountable systems of governance inherited from the colonial era. If justice, dignity, and self-respect remain the objective, then future struggles must increasingly shift away from the romanticization of past confrontations toward the strengthening of democratic institutions, constitutional accountability, local self-government, education, economic opportunity, and individual liberty.

The Sikh Gurus themselves did not merely resist injustice. They built institutions. They established systems of collective leadership. They emphasized education, discipline, community responsibility, and human dignity. Their legacy reminds us that sustainable reform requires construction, not merely resistance. The future does not belong solely to those who remember martyrdom. It belongs to those who master law, governance, economics, education, technology, and institutional organization.

Only then can sacrifice acquire enduring meaning.

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Truth Over Myth

Every generation inherits two legacies. One is memory. The other is responsibility.

Memory preserves identity. Responsibility determines the future. This article has not been written to preserve old myths or to create new ones. Nor has it been written to diminish anyone's sacrifice or question anyone's sincerity. It has been written in the hope that future generations may better understand one of the most painful chapters in Punjab's modern history. Truth must always stand above myth. Context must stand above emotion. Institutions must stand above personalities. Understanding must stand above unquestioning loyalty. History should not be approached as a prosecution seeking convictions, nor as a defense seeking acquittals. It should be approached as an honest inquiry into how societies rise, how they decline, and how they may avoid repeating their greatest mistakes.

The greatest tribute we can pay to those who suffered is not to preserve their divisions but to preserve the lessons their suffering can teach future generations.

History is a patient judge. It neither applauds slogans nor condemns emotions. It measures leaders, governments, movements, and institutions by what they ultimately leave behind. Whether future generations inherit wisdom or recurring tragedy depends entirely upon their willingness to examine the past honestly, question inherited assumptions, and build institutions stronger than personalities.

Only then can history cease to be a burden of memory and become what it was always meant to be—our greatest teacher.

 

 

 

 

"At War: Four Pillars of Falsehood & Public of Republic"- Book Review by Prof.GS Sood

Book Review : Decriminalizing the victims, Book Review by G.S.Sood in GFilesIndia.com on June 5 2016 

THE facts contained in the book may have faded out of the memory of most since it is based on the events that author revisited after a gap of more than a decade of his 20 years (1983-2003) association at senior level with government of India as frontline operation officer as an Officer Commanding on Internal security duty in field to policy making and planning in Vigilance and Counter Intelligence. But as the saying goes that ‘those who forget the history are condemned to repeat it’, the book is a must read especially for those manning the current establishment since the onus now lies on Modi Government to correct the grave misdeeds committed by the previous regime knowingly or unknowingly to remain in power.

Also, in a state of falsehood where police and judiciary are turned into coercive arms of the state to perpetrate organised violence with deluge of disinformation to give legitimacy to state tyranny through its planted operations on the pretext of preserving unity and territorial integrity of the nation, it becomes impossible for independent scholars to have access to reliable and authentic data (that author as an insider provides) on chain of such critical events that help India sustain its proxy war against its civil society and persistent criminal acts of state agencies in India. On one count, the author concludes that police in every state of India is one of the most hated and feared organisation by the public due to its predatory work culture. Public in general do not trust the police its corruption and criminalization.

The author has given an illustrative account of how the “Executive pillar of democracy, manned by dumb babus of IAS/IPS without any domain expertise, devoid of problem solving aptitude and organising abilities appointed for being pliable with criminal propensities, blind obedience and loyalty to enlightened political terrorists in position of power doomed the public of this republic. He illustrates with evidences as to how theory of ‘Controlled Chaos’ evolved by evil political genius with sponsored acts of terrorism through its rogue intelligence and security agencies was mistaken to belief that it would ensure their continuity in power and invariably lead to uncontrolled events in politics.

He writes that if India will ever disintegrate, it will be due to the excesses of its existing colonial police work culture and security forces. Country is all about its people, rest is all theory and vested interests wrapped in piece of cloth handed over to bunch of thugs in special costumes, who march in rank and file, for nothing but their livelihood and brand it as “Nationalism”. It’s time to redefine the “Nationalism” and make each and every anti people state functionary accountable for his acts of treason against the people and the country.

Discussing the role of army in democracies, the author observes that Indian Army and paramilitary forces will keep failing as long as they will keep meddling in internal political affairs of the country and themselves to be used by divisive political leadership against own countrymen and will be doomed, the day they will be pitted against external aggression. They will have to protect on two fronts, their internal front of alienated masses who have been their victims since last 68 years and the adversary.

He says that if a corrupt political government enacts the laws of lawlessness to criminalise and disintegrate a political movement of civic sovereignty, it becomes the moral responsibility of democratically elected popular political government to decriminalise the victims and not only provide them relief but to honor their sacrifices and compensate them for the hardships these victims endured.( Mr.G.S.Sood The author is retired as Professor from the University of Delhi in 2024. He is an alumnus of IIM Indore and holds a PhD from the Delhi School of Economics. An investor activist and former member of various SEBI committees. He taught Capital Markets and Investment Banking at leading business schools of India.)

Are rogues of IPS responsible for spiraling crime, corruption and insurgencies in India

 Congratulations Mr. Gajendra Singh Chaudhary.(Does India Need IPS headed Policing) It is for the first time in the history of post British India that I am reading an article that has been written to address an issue that forms the backbone of spiraling crime and corruption and criminalization of the police in post British India. During British era police in India was brutal but certainly not criminalized and violating the principle of “Due process”.

In the post British India, the phenomenon of encounter specialist cops doing cold blooded murders in the streets, is all creation of rogue minds of IPS, who see power not as medium of “service” but “dominance & Authority”, rather in true sense if we compare them with street criminals of violent crimes and extortion, police will be found to be doing the same acts with complete impunity and protection of these very rogue IPS. Criminalization and corruption in police is all due to lack of integrity among IPS, who wield absolute authority without any direct accountability, and you will find vast majority of them suffering from authoritarian and dominance tendencies for lacking professionalism.

I had written to UPSC, as to how they check the aptitude for candidates of IPS and they replied there is no specific test designed to identify such an aptitude needed specifically to be police officer, but there after they introduced one and prospective candidates of UPSC had gone on strike outside Dholpur House.

Police in Indian states has graduated to organized criminal acts that are covered on live TV to eliminate the controversial goons and politicians. All the credit goes to elitist and glorified IPS for criminalization of police. The murder of Atiq Ahmed was live telecast with complete police patronage. The Gill era in Punjab with thousands of cold blooded murders in fake encounters is testimony to the trait of authoritarianism that created millionaire cops and it continues and spread across India.

Everyone cannot become a police officer. One needs to have aptitude and Turning an individual into a professional police officer is highly transformative and comprehensive process and involves time duration to enable an individual to pick up the nuances of the profession.

‪But the intake system in the police in India is totally retrograde to this aspect. The officers of IPS remain devoid of practical experience and acquire superfluous experience in limited periods as mere fomality. And instead of taking professional policing decisions, they take political decisions, resorting to shortcuts for instant results and in turn they transform the complete policing into the gang of criminals as was described by Justice Anand Narain Mulla of the Allahabad High Court who had once famously remarked that “there is not a single lawless group in the whole of the country whose record of crime comes anywhere near the record of that organised unit which is known as the police in India".

‪I remember I had written a letter to commissioner Delhi Police on the suspension of an SHO and at that time, I mentioned to him that the IPS are nothing but “Chair force” and always pitted against “ police force”.

‪I am happy that professionals like Mr. Chaudhary have began taking interest on this aspect of governance and now there can be hope that police reforms may begin in the right direction, the kind of Reforms that need to take place from the perspective of the citizens of post British India. The IPS deputation to Central armed police forces need to immediately stop since they remain devoid of practical operational and administrative experience In these forces at the grass roots, no training, capsule or academic degree can substitute the practical operational and administrative experience.

Police personnel in every Indian state are trained like infantry combatants, same story goes for the Central police Forces.

It is the police working that provokes conflict, escalates it and turns it into full blown insurgency, all due to incompetent and unprofessional IPS heading the state police organizations and when similar incompetent lot is allowed to throng the Central police organizations too, Indians rot in the simmering heat of conflicts and insurgencies.

Police system in India needs complete radical overhaul with restructuring, retraining and demilitarization and decentralization with a paradigm shift from current intake system of IPS.

Beyond the Line of Control: A Life Lived on the Frontiers of Duty and Dissent

 

 

Guarding the frontiers against hostile enemies and unfriendly neighbors is no ordinary duty, a relentless test of courage, endurance, and sheer willpower. It demands men and women who can withstand killing loneliness, months of separation from their families, and the crushing silence of landscapes untouched by human life.

In these remote outposts, where the freezing howling wind itself feels like an enemy and resources are painfully scarce, survival is an art learned the hard way. Improvisation becomes instinct, deception becomes armor, and every breath is taken with the knowledge that the next could be your last.

On a routine patrol—if anything here can ever be called routine—every step is a gamble. A drifted landmine could be sleeping beneath thick foliage or buried silently under layers of snow, waiting for an unlucky boot to trigger its fury. An enemy sniper could be lying still for hours, camouflaged in shadows, making death only a heartbeat and a bullet away for any member of the patrol.

Those who face these hazards not occasionally but as a way of life—day after day, night after night—cannot be ordinary people. They are forged in isolation, hardened by danger, and sustained by a sense of duty that defies explanation. Every moment on these borders is a battle for survival, every second an act of defiance against a war that never truly ends.

 They live where nothing reigns but fear—and yet they stand.

A Soldier is Forged by Contradictions

This story revolves around a man born into contradiction and built for conflict—an armed forces officer recruited as a police officer, trained as an infantry combatant, and deployed as a peacekeeper in a nation spiraling into violent rebellion.

To add to the absurdity, he drew the salary of an Army Second Lieutenant, performed the duties of a Major, and wore the rank of a Captain. A walking contradiction, dressed in three stars, tasked with pacifying a land that had spent two centuries being brutalized by colonial rule. Generations of subjugation had turned its people into rebels, its villages into simmering furnaces of dissent, and its politics into a tragic comedy of recycled tyranny.

Independence was supposed to be liberation.

Instead, the colonial baton was passed neatly into the hands of new political masters—leaders who had once rallied the masses against foreign oppression but then preserved the same machinery of control. Successive governments fed the fires of conflict, breeding discontent, betrayal, and insurgency across the nation.    

Into this chaos stepped Aridaman Jit Singh.

A Lineage Carved in Battle

Aridaman was born into a family where conflict was not an event, it was a tradition. His grandfather fought in the British Army during World War I. Two uncles served through World War II and later in India’s wars against Pakistan and China. His father stood in the line as an officer in the Rajasthan Police and later in the Border Security Force.

Growing up in the Rajasthan Police Lines was like growing up inside a military training film. Parade grounds echoed with rifle drills. Boots thundered like daily earthquakes. Bugles replaced lullabies. Before he understood algebra, he had already memorized the difference between a left turn, a right turn, and a life-altering wrong turn.

He thrived in the National Cadet Corps, excelling in athletics, boxing, shooting, and tactical exercises. At the 1982 Advance Leadership Camp in Pachmarhi, he rose above hundreds of cadets to be declared Best All-Rounder, winning the gold medal for drill, endurance, combat skills, and cross-country running.

After completing his M.A. in History from Kurukshetra University in 1983, he cleared the national competition for the Border Security Force and joined as a Platoon Commander. Forty-four weeks of grueling training later, he passed out of the BSF Academy on March 31, 1984—a polished weapon ready for deployment.

The Inspector General, the Turban, and the Ten-Minute Purgatory

In April, 1984 the ten freshly minted direct-entry Platoon Commanders reported to the Inspector General’s Headquarters in Calcutta. A collective inspection was underway. Of the ten, nine were assigned to border units almost immediately.

But the tenth—

the lone turbaned officer—

was met with something else.

Inspector General W.G.J. Mudaliar, IPS a short, sharp-featured officer with the quiet intensity of a man used to being obeyed, stopped in front of him. He scanned him slowly—from turban to boots—like he was reading an encrypted message on a reluctant computer screen. And then, without saying a word, moved on.

Units were announced one by one. Luggage was mentally packed. Travel routes were calculated. Spirits were high.

And then there was the last guy.

No posting.

No instructions.

No explanation.

Just silence.

A brand-new officer’s worst nightmare.

Was his training faulty?

Was his turn-out unacceptable?

Was he fired before he even began?

He wandered to the Inspector Admin’s office, looking for answers. Instead, he found the universal greeting given to new entrants in all armed forces: snubs, grunts, and majestic indifference.

His career had begun.

But nobody had told him how—

or where.   

United States of America's Highway Safety depends on Experience-Not Immigration Status

  America’s Trucking Safety Depends on Experience — Not Immigration Status

When the Department of Transportation issued its Interim Final Rule on September 29, 2025, targeting the commercial driving privileges of nearly 196,000 non-domiciled CDL holders, it framed the decision as a matter of “restoring integrity” and improving roadway safety. But the Department’s justification—citing three accidents involving non-domiciled drivers—raises more questions than answers. It also risks causing a crisis far larger and more dangerous than the one it claims to prevent.

The rule targets individuals who have already passed one of the most rigorous state-level testing systems in the world. Each commercial driver—domiciled or not—is required to demonstrate mastery of written knowledge, hazard perception, judgment, information processing, and practical driving skills under live traffic conditions. These tests are administered by trained professionals who assess exactly what matters for road safety.

Crucially, none of these capabilities are influenced by immigration status.

Driving a Class A commercial vehicle is not a theoretical exercise; it is a profession built on skill, endurance, situational awareness, and years of practical experience. The safest drivers are not the ones with the “right” paperwork—they are the ones who have spent thousands of hours navigating storms, construction zones, reckless motorists, mechanical failures, and the daily complexity of America’s highways.

To remove nearly 200,000 experienced drivers overnight—many with years of spotless records—ignores the basic truth that experience is the most valuable safety asset on the road. No regulatory change can manufacture it. No policy memo can replace it.

This rule does more than sideline workers. It risks destabilizing the supply chain at a time when the nation’s logistics system is still rebuilding resilience. Removing this many qualified drivers from the workforce will inevitably:

Flood the roads with inexperienced replacements

Increase training burdens on carriers

Raise freight costs and delivery delays

Disrupt essential goods movement

Create financial devastation for the families of 196,000 drivers

The nation simply cannot afford a safety policy that makes the roads less safe.

America’s democratic institutions have stood for more than two centuries because they protect principles of fairness, evidence-based decision-making, and equality before the law. A regulation that treats a driver’s immigration category as a proxy for safety fails that test. It also risks setting a dangerous precedent where professional competence is overshadowed by political gesture.

The Justices now reviewing this rule bear a weighty responsibility. Their deliberation is not only about regulatory limits—it is about whether the nation’s commitment to fairness and merit still holds. The executive branch crafts policy, but it is the judiciary that ensures those policies honor the Constitution, the facts, and the people affected.

A better path is possible. A fairer, smarter, safer approach would focus on what truly causes accidents: fatigue, substance misuse, poor maintenance, inadequate training, and unsafe carrier practices—not nationality or immigration paperwork. These are issues America has addressed before, with bipartisan support and industry cooperation.

We do not build safer highways by removing skilled drivers. We build safer highways by supporting them, training them, and enforcing rules that actually improve safety outcomes.

For the sake of road safety, economic stability, and the livelihoods of 196,000 families, this rule deserves not just reconsideration—but a complete re-examination grounded in evidence, experience, and the values that define American democracy.

Experience makes safe drivers.

Not immigration status.

Not political spectacle.

And certainly not a rule that confuses the two.

 Barriers to seek justice for minorities in India

There is no question of barriers to justice when you have perpetrators in position of power to administer justice, how do you expect them to go for extreme suicidal step of delivering you justice. As long as the power formation of the laws of the lawlessness will remain in existence and the state is perpetrator of crimes, there will be no justice. If you allow to be taken captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy of governance and justice against which your forefathers sacrificed their lives, then you deserved it.

The biggest barrier in seeking justice in India is the existing state and its attendant institutions of coercive criminal justice system of India that was founded by the colonial rulers and functions on the principle of deception and surprise. The foremost and time-tested principal employed by armies from around the world to win the wars is the principle of deception, to surprise the enemy. The moment enemy succeeds in surprising you to the extent that you perceive him your ally and protector; you are in the midst of a disaster for extinction. The communities that are victims of injustice in post-1947 India are all the victims of colonial India and the two most deceptive institutions of colonial state, the local militia, named as police & " the Indian judiciary " both of these institutions function and follow all the colonial laws, protocols and practices & workculture, that were designed to terrorise and brutalise the public to generate sense of fear and ensure wilful subjugation of communities, for unhindered economic exploitation and that’s what these two institutions have been deceptively doing. In the democratic setup of India both these institutions are mandated for delivering security and justice to the people but the past practical experiences of people on ground substantiate that security and justice is made first casualty by these very two institutions.

The blueprint of these injustices was made by Benjamin Franklin while writing the rules of colonialism, where he says however peaceably your colonies have submitted to your government, shown their affection to your interests, and patiently borne their grievances, you are to suppose them always inclined to revolt and treat them accordingly. Quarter troops among them, who by their insolence may provoke the rising of mobs, and by their bullets and bayonets suppress them. Whenever the injured come to the capital with complaints of maladministration, oppression, or injustice, punish such suitors with long delay, enormous expense and a final judgement in favour of the oppressor.

The Sikh community, the community of warriors, the community that was founded to fight injustice, finds itself as the worst victim of injustices perpetrated not only by political families of majoritarian Hindu community but also by both of these deceptive institutions of police & the alleged Indian judiciary for having raised its voice against injustice and these deceptive institutions have dealt with the Sikh community in accordance to the colonial work culture of terrorising and brutalising the complainants of injustice and advance the agenda of the oppressor state.

The exploitative regime of colonialism, functions on the principle of denying the principal identity of communities by decimating it, through brutalities & terror and by killing the community leaders and to implement this strategy, it protects its criminal institutions through the laws of lawlessness and that's what, post 1947 India has been witnessing. The Sikh community perceives itself as the victim because it raised its voice against injustice and corruption organised itself to democratically challenge the state to demand its rights and the colonial state and its autocratic ruler family that had been nurtured and planted to assume the power deliberately created the circumstances and used the might of Indian army to eliminate this purported threat to the sovereignty of India .but Sikh community should not forget that same treatment is administered to that every community that has its distinct identity and which raises its voice against corruption, injustice and perceived as threat by the existing state.

The insurgency of Nagaland happens to be the oldest insurgency in the country dating back to 1960s. The 21 states of India are under the shadow of another insurgent movement in the name of naxalites where unarmed villagers are being killed in the criminal acts of security forces on regular intervals and community leaders are being tortured to death. The people of Kashmir have paid a heavy price with their lives and properties for having raised their voice against injustice and corruption of exploitative regimes but still it continues unabated. The extra constitutional laws, created by the autocratic rulers of post-1947 India who had assumed the powers of governance from Britishers have kept on succeeding in maintaining status quo by enacting new laws of lawlessness use of Indian army by a state that remains on war with its own people all the time is all part of the post colonial colonialism that perceives Indian society, only through the prism of the ruler and the ruled. The exploitative regime of this post 1947 colonialism has its own social order of the ruler and the ruled and any community or individual, who so ever will endeavour to destabilise this social order will be killed by the state forces or through judicial murders and it is continuing unabated.

It is the biggest propaganda and fraud of 21st century when India claims itself as the world's largest democracy. On the eve of departure from India, the British Rulers handedover the colonial power structure to those political people who were broughtup and conversant with British culture and British value system. and had been acting middleman to diffuse the pressure on colonial rulers by channelising the energy of revolting public from grassroots. This Political leadership with complete loyality to its British Masters not only continued all the antidemocratic laws, rules regulations and protocols and practices in post independent India, they adopted harshest parts of British laws(Government of India Act 1935, Defence of India rules 1910 and redrafted as Defence of India Act 1915) while writting democratic constitution. All those people who were educated and broght up with British education and language wrote democratic constitution of Independent India with antidemocratic laws in tandem.In the name of democracy, India though adopted electoral system but it has continued all the colonial laws of lawlessness and its complete governance apparatus including deceptive judiciary that functions on the principles of absolute discretion and complete immunity to accountability and sole reason of endemic corruption and injustice to its people. It is the judicial corruption and exploitation of governance apparatus protected by local militia in the form of police and Indian army that has led to the emergence of new class struggles in the country.

Nowhere in the world, justice can be dispensed to the people through the laws and the language that remains alien to the social fabric of that society. The Indian judiciary is still following all the colonial laws that were created by Britishers and worded and structured in a way that gives absolute discretion and liberty of interpretation to suit it to its arbitrary judges and accordingly the judicial officers take full advantage of these laws to advance the agenda of state actors/accused and fulfil own vested interests and inflicts injustice to the complainants. The rampant corruption prevalent in judiciary and the police has led to the rejection of both these institutions by the common man on the street and victims of violent crimes keep dying due to public apathy that emanate out of public distrust on these two institutions. As a matter of practice, where ever state actors have been found to be involved in extrajudicial killings or fake encounters the accused persons are allowed to die their natural death before justice is dispensed in such cases. All the cases of corruption or injustice filed against the state actors or even the criminal cases of henious crimes or even rape and murder remain pending in the courts for decades that give advantage to the criminals and inspire their confidence on the courts and the rise in the number of such crimes on the streets is directly attributable to judicial corruption.

The politically elected representatives that are made accountable by public every five years do not have an independent capacity, experience, specialisation & visualisation to bring institutional and structural changes to democratise the existing apparatus and completely bank upon the bureaucratic machinery for policy formulation and this bureaucratic machinery remains on the spree to get enacted Draconian laws to crush the voices of political dissent that are outcome of the conflict between the Democratic aspirations of the people and the existing governance apparatus and its laws.

In such a state of crisis when complete Indian nation is coming in direct conflict with its ruling class, comprising of corrupt political leadership, bureaucracy, judiciary and corrupt media, the onus lies on those community leaders of character and integrity, who can make personal sacrifices of their time and money and organise communities to save Indian society from the onslaught of state institutions and strengthen the political leadership with evidence-based informations for policy formulation for repealing of antidemocratic laws and democratisation of all the governance institutions including police and judiciary. Till such time many more innocent people may have to fall victims to not only injustice and corruption but judicial murders by Indian states and its coercive judiciary and we may have to accept it for having reposed our trust in deceptive institutions and hollow philosophy of establishing the world’s largest democracy.

Miseries of people have not ended

Miseries of people have not ended

book review by Mubashir Rasool Bhat, as it appeared in Rising Kashmir News paper of Srinagar on Wednesday, 11 May 2016.

The book is divided into British era and post-British India, with the authors passionately debating that not much has changed since the transition of power.

Seikh Sadi warned, beware the buildup of an inward wound, for it will at last burst, avoid while you can, distress to one heart, for a single moan can quake the earth.

The book "At war: Four Pillars of Falsehood & Public of Republic", is a never before expose of the prevailing status quo, the inherent colonial legacy. The authors Aridaman Jit Singh and Nayani Singh makes a bold assertion by suggesting that India in real essence never attained freedom from Britain, but covertly transferred the ownership from autocratic British to the colonial pimps.

The term colonial pimps is freely used throughout the book to relate to the stalwarts of the freedom movement like Mohan Das Karamchand Gandhi, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, and Indian National Congress (INC).

The authors provides food for thought when they dig into the past of Pandit Nehru and MK Gandhi, lays bare the historical narrative and provides conclusive proof with regards to them having been on the side of the British all through the enactment of the freedom struggle circus.

Readers discretion advised: be prepared to gasp, as the gory truths about deceit and manipulations are let loose in the public domain with undeniable facts, Gandhis "Kaiser-i-Hind" award for smearing the revolution in South Africa, how Bruce came to the fore, and how revolutionaries like Bhagat Singh etal, they are supreme sacrifices were never owned will keep readers glued to the book.

This well-documented and precisely written pieces of scholarship is divided into British era and post-British India, with the authors passionately debating that not much has changed since the transition of power.

The authors wish to tell the audience that the transition of power from the British Crown was to India and not to Bharat. The Bharat suffered under the oppressive regime of East India company and it continues to do so under the autocratic representatives of the Queen, conciliatory class of intermediaries of Indian National Congress and Muslim league.

The prices of the people have not ended, with change of flags and guard. Colonies don't cease to be colonies by getting independence of the sort India achieved.

"At War; Four Pillars of Falsehood & Public of Republic" is a story of betrayal of gullible Indian population since the dawn of the end of the colonial oppression. Empowered with dubious colonial laws and equally ambiguous and indeterminate Constitution of India, that was described as wastepaper by some of the saner souls of the constituent assembly, the country has continued the solmon traditions of the extortionists colonial state craft; all the while projecting itself as world's largest democracy.

The authors write that executive, judiciary, legislature and press have achieved exactly opposite of what they want us to believe they stand for.

The hypocrisy of the icons of freedom struggle often comes to the fore as the authors unfold the ambivalence and posturing of their whims. The judiciary which Nehru refused to be tried under in 1921, declared its farce, is the same he preferred when "tryst with destiny"speech was belted.

The authors further writet that "India awakens to freedom" was a deception galore to lull people into incomprehension.. On a lighter note, the authors wants us to know that when the "India awakens to freedom" speech being broadcasted, the only people sleeping were the people of India as it was around midnight and vast majority of rural hard-working Indians having the much deserved rest.

The authors say that the only people who were awake were the people of England along with their Queen.

The book gives a vivid description of how the state machinery inherited from the British was unleased on people as a source of oppression and it continues to be so. Exploitative taxation under Raj continues in form or another, pillars of democracy refused to hold state machinery answerable on account of crimes perpetrated against the average Indian, the executive, the judiciary, the legislature and the press is nothing but the knight in shining armour.

The authors have also called the Indian Constitution as the "law of the lawlessness".

One of the authors have served in security apparatus of India and was deputed as operational commander on internal security duty to Punjab, where the Khalistan movement had spread its tentacles and engulfed the whole region.

He articulates the case study where he had his fingers on the pulse with pure rationale and hard-hitting facts. The situation in Punjab was exaggerated to satisfy the whims and desires of the ruling elite.

The author writes that the drama was enacted with the state machinery empowered with colonial laws that gave forces the absolute impunity. Hence an acre where people could be held without trial, access to lawyers, and forced disappearances, fake encounters, laws like Armed Forces (special Powers) acts (AFSPA), prevention of terrorism act (POTA), and terrorists and disruptive activities (prevention) act (TADA) ushered in galore. Declaring conspicuous and telling insight his provided when the book discusses how appointments to the offices of highest prominence are carried out. The appointments of Pres, governors of the states, and other top ranking officials within the security apparatus are merely tools of the Central government to rob people of civil sovereignty dodgy ordinances are passed left, right and centre to execute the gory will of the state against the citizenry.

In the conclusion, it would be apt to say that the independence of India has not yet see its dawn, the same draconian colonial abyss prevails; the political movements of the past that claimed to have worked for the people of India have in reality never reflected the true aspirations of people.

In retrospect, it has become all the more imperative that we hold these corridors of power accountable to their vicious agenda against the very people they claim to represent.

The concept of modern-day nationalism has come to blind and divide rather than to enlighten and unite. It is this modern-day Frankestein what Oscar Wilde referred to as" vicious".

The state does what it has to that is to safeguard the territorial integrity and it does so in the garb of democracy.

Author can be emailed at srinagar.dhv@gmail.com