Ground breaking ceremony for construction of 1984 Sikh Carnage Memorial

New Delhi, November 1, 2014: Describing the genocide of Sikhs in 1984 as "Fourth Holocaust (Ghallughara), the Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today said that the upcoming November 1984 Sikh carnage memorial being built by the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) would preserve the history of this barbaric incident for generations to come.

Addressing the gathering before performing the ground breaking ceremony to start the construction work of this memorial at Gurdwara Rakabganj Sahib here today, the Chief Minister, accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal, said that the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) would continue its struggle relentlessly to get each guilty involved in this heinous genocide to the book.  He said that the Sikhs have faced four major holocausts during the entire Sikh history out of which two big and small holocausts was a result of the tyranny of the Mughal rule. However, he said that it was unimaginable that in free India the own government of the country would unleash terror on them by two holocausts one during operation Blue Star in Sri Harimandir Sahib and second after the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, in which nearly 5000 innocents Sikhs were killed alone in Delhi besides nearly 10000 across the country.    

The Chief Minister said that this would memorial was a tribute to the memory of martyrs and a salute to the bravery of other victims, who fell prey to the perpetrators of this heinous crime. Badal said that the nations which forget their history were forgotten by history adding that this memorial would serve as a reminder to the rulers of the future that uncivilised deeds were always condemned by society. Badal said that the Memorial was being constructed with “humility in our hearts and prayers on our lips for peace and communal harmony, especially in Punjab.

The Chief Minister said that our real tribute to the martyrs was to preserve peace and communal harmony in the country as these brave Sikhs lost their lives and beloved ones the sole bread winners in several families only because peace and communal harmony was disturbed by Congress conspiracies. He said that today was a very historic day not only for the Khalsa Panth but for the entire country and for all civilized people in the world adding that the entire gathering must utilize this platform to pray together forever lasting peace and communal harmony in the country.

Recalling the 1984 Sikh carnage, the Chief Minister bemoaned that the most shocking part of this conspiracy was that it happened in national capital, Delhi and other parts of the country. He said that though the official figures deliberately down-played number of victims, but in fact more than 10,000 innocent and unarmed Sikh elderly men, women and children were killed in the conspiracy hatched by the Congress leaders under the party's policy of “Khoon ka Badla Khoon”. Badal said that these slogans were heard on the national television on October 31 and November 1, 1984.

The Chief Minister said that this bloodbath was not a communal riot but a massacre carried out by gangs or killers, looters, arsonists and rapists belonging to the Congress party. He said that senior leaders of the Congress party, including HKL Bhagat, Sajjan Kumar, Jagdish Tytler and others actually sponsored this massacre adding that responsible and respected independent witnesses saw Congress leaders leading the gangs of killers and looters into Sikh localities to carry out the country’s most shameful massacre. Badal said that the executors of this crime left no stone unturned in harming the Sikhs at the behest of the then Congress government.

The Chief Minister further said that several leading legal luminaries, ex-judges, senior editors, human rights and civil liberties activities and organisations have indicted the Congress and its leaders for this crime adding that even Commissions of Inquiry which probed the massacre reached the same conclusion that leaders of the Congress party at the highest level were responsible for this heinous crime against humanity. Badal lamented that even after passing of 30 years the guilty of the massacre still freely roam the streets of the capital and to rub salt into wounds of Sikhs many of these leaders were rewarded with high offices in the corridors of power while other were given Congress tickets for the Parliament and Cabinet berths, for the murders, lootings, arson and molestation, to be removed only under public pressure.

The Chief Minister further said that it was grave injustice with the victims that for more than three decades justice has been denied to them. He said that even where some action was initiated under public pressure, progress has been deliberately slow and complaints have been pending without any FIRs being registered. Badal said that political and official patronage has been given to attempts to either weaken or completely sabotage and abandon action where FIRs were registered.

Reiterating the demand of SAD-BJP alliance for strictest possible action against the guilty and relief to the victims of the massacre, the Chief Minister sought a comprehensive relief package for the riot victims adding that Union government must set up a Commission of Inquiry, headed by a Supreme Court judge to inquire the entire conspiracy including official and political patronage behind the massacre in a time bound manner. He further said that the Commission should submit its report within six months. Likewise, Badal said that special Dedicated Courts should be set up to expedite the delivery of justice where FIRs have been registered and challans presented.

The Chief Minister further said that all closed cases should be re-investigated and thereafter challans be presented before the Special Dedicated Courts adding that all complaints on which no action has been taken be investigated and challans be presented to the Special Dedicated Courts.

Speaking on the occasion, the Deputy Chief Minister and President of SAD Sukhbir Singh Badal said that even a child of ten years or an elder of 80 years was very well conversant with this barbaric act in which thousands of innocent Sikhs were butchered at the behest of Congress government. In this light, he said that there was hardly any need to constitute any SIT to identify the culprits involved in this holocaust rather it was crystal clear that the Congress leaders like Bhagat, Tytler and Sajjan Kumar were openly instigating the mob to take a toll of death on Sikhs. Sukhbir Singh Badal said that unfortunately even the International Human Rights organisations had failed to realise the agony of the Sikhs and their families even after passing of more than three decades.

The Deputy Chief Minister pointed out that the cases of ‘war crimes’ were even heard by the United Nations after period of 50-60 years and the guilty were tried but in this case of genocide nothing was done so far to assuage the tormented Sikh psyche. He said that SAD had been waging a relentless battle since three decades to seek justice from the successive Union governments but at last we were now hopeful of some tangible results in the near future. Sukhbir Singh Badal said, “A positive beginning has been made by the NDA government by giving Financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh to each of the victim of this carnage but this can never compensate the enormous loss suffered by the beleaguered families who lost their kith and kin. These hapless families can only get a bit of consolation only if the culprits of this grave crime are convicted by the law of the land”.

The Deputy Chief Minister said that none would succeed in their nefarious designs to divide and destabilize Sikhs, which was evident from the results of Haryana assembly elections where Congress party finished at third slot for their suicidal attempt to dilute the Sikh power by constituting separate Gurdwara Management Committee for the state. He said that the Chief architect of this conspiracy- HS Chatha was badly rejected by the Sikhs in Haryana at hustings, where he could hardly manage to save his security deposits from forfeiture.  

In his address, the President of Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Committee Manjit Singh GK said that this memorial was an attempt to pay homage to the martyrs and victims of 1984 Sikh carnage. He said that the previous Congress led UPA government had even halted the DSGMC to construct this memorial and how one could expect of them to do justice with Sikhs as far as the question of punishing the guilty was concerned.

Prominent amongst other who attended the function included Jathedar Sri Akal Takht Sahib Giani Gurbachan Singh, Jathedar Sri Keshgarh Sahib Giani Mal Singh and Jathedar Takht Sri Patna Sahib Giani Iqbal Singh, Head of Damdami Taksal Baba Harnam Singh, Lok Sabha MP Meenakshi Lekhi, Delhi BJP Chief Satish Upadhay, former MPs Tarlochan Singh and Jaya Jaitely, MLAs Delhi Majinder Singh Sirsa and Jatinder Singh Shunty besides several religious and political leaders.             

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