A forgotten slaughter
- The Random Leftist
- Aug 7, 2020
- 3 min read
In light of recent events, many are questioning if prejudice is a thing of the past. However, this discussion is primarily about the western world, and through acts of discrimination internationally don’t go undiscussed, they receive nowhere near the attention that crimes in the west do, even when they are in some cases worse than what happens in the west.
The year was 1984 in the west; this is a time of overall nostalgia. It was far from a golden age with Reaganomics and the Cold War, but it was far from a time of turbulence. In the communist second world, it was a time of stagnation, with the country having a leadership change. In India, it was a time of near collapse with a plethora of secessionist movements gaining traction. It was the final day of October and the fourth year of the second tenure of Indian Prime minister Indira Gandhi. Though not without controversy, her leadership over the country had yielded many successes, and she had quite a strong support base. However, she also wasn’t without detractors. Among them were members of India’s Sikh population as were among the groups that had secessionist movements. Not all Sikhs wanted succession; however, those who did had backing from India’s rival Pakistan. These separatists were also far from peaceful with 410 people dying.
Now this section will be generalized since the focus of this article would be the events that followed. However, there will be links down below that go into further detail. In June 1984, one Sikh separatist group and its leader Jarnail Bhindranwale was granted sanctuary in the Golden Temple within Amritsar, Punjab, by the leader of the Sikh political party. The Indian government quickly learned that the separatists were stockpiling arms and decided to launch a military attack on the building. The operation lasted a week, and the Indian Army had 83 casualties, while the militants had 493. In addition to the deaths, the operation also left a psychological mark on many Sikhs throughout India.
Things reached a boiling point four months later when her two Sikh bodyguards killed the prime minister of the country out of retribution for what happened at the Golden Temple. However, the violence that had proceeded would be nothing compared to what followed. A mere hours after the prime minister’s death, the vehicle of Sikh politician Zail Singh was stoned. Later in the evening, mobs across the country begin to organize. The following day the carnage began. It would last for four days. All across the country, bands of armed rioters raided Sikh neighborhoods. Politicians and even parliament members rallied the people to attack the Sikhs. With one later commission claiming “... the backing and help of influential and resourceful persons, the killing of Sikh’s so swiftly and in large numbers could not have happened.” Destroying homes and killing civilians. Many police units turned a blind eye or joined in on the violence. However, not everyone supported the violence, and many non-Sikh’s helped hide and protect seeks. By the time the violence concluded, officially over 3,000 Sikhs were dead. However independent estimates go as high as 17,000. This death toll is even more horrifying when you realize that regimes like Pinochet’s achieved similar death counts in years as the riots delivered in days. Due to the death of the Prime Minister, the Indian government was in a disoriented state. It was slow to react to the violence, and minor sections of it even engaged in it, but eventually, the military would intervene in different regions to stop it.
In the following years, inquiries were launched, and petitions were signed with a total of 10 commissions being formed for that purpose. However, only 30 people had been convicted, with there being 241 cases closed. Additionally, most of the people sentenced were low ranking members of India’s Congress party.
In addition to raising attention to this virtually unknown event in the west and also because I also thought it was very relevant due to recent events. Since things like violent racial riots seem like something of the distant past, however with events like these happened in time as recent as 1984 and with these current times being rather turbulent it’s always important to be vigilant and do our best to ensure the monsters from the past don’t resurface. Lastly, if there are any important pieces of information I left out or any mistakes I made please feel free to tell me.
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