Punjab: Street takes on State

Resurgence of Khalistani secessionism reflects deep-seated sentiments in some quarters in Punjab and needs a calibrated response

Punjab is encountering a fiercely restive street. Never — at least not in the recent past — such a robust resurgent wave of radicalism has garnered traction so raucously, and that too so quickly.

After pro-Khalistan protagonists brandishing swords and firearms with impunity, chasing away the mighty Punjab Police, overrunning a police station in Ajnala seeking release of an accused, and cocking a snook at the law, it appears like the State is capitulating before stubborn resilience of this wave.

So, is the street getting more powerful than the State under the current dispensation? No it is not; yet there are worrying signs. Even before the February 23 incident at Ajnala — and particularly after it — the State remains arguably subdued in its response to deal with the unfolding developments.

The abrupt entry of 30-year-old Sikh radical leader Amritpal Singh onto the Punjab landscape raising the bogie of Khalistan is not just curious, it underlines the existing fault-lines. The meteoric rise of Singh, who until he returned to Punjab from Dubai in 2022 would shorn his hair and beard, unlike an Amritdhari Sikh (those who have gone through the sacred Sikh initiation ceremony), coincides with his success in building the narrative of a separate Sikh state.

For decades now the Khalistani ideology has existed in Punjab, albeit in a subdued manner. Now, the clamour for it has got louder, and it needs to be viewed with caution before it goes out of control. The early signs are disquieting, and none need be reminded of the dark days of militancy Punjab suffered in the 1908s and ’90s. Singh appears eager to step into the shoes of slain radical leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, with his sartorial choices and appearance resembling the latter so much that some dub him ‘Bhindranwale 2.0’. One thing that differentiates the two is that Bhindranwale never used the Khalistan word, unlike Singh who has rechristened his image seeking ‘Khalistan’. Singh is mincing no words to take the establishment head-on.

How does one explain Singh’s success in polarising the narrative, and influencing many young Sikh minds? Experts feel that he has effectively tapped into the underlying pain many nurse for justice not being served — be it on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, or the sacrilege of the holy book, or unemployment, or rampant drug abuse, and many more.

Mainstream political outfits have failed to address these issues that have led to an unattended political vacuum in Punjab — one that cannot be blurred by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)’s thumping electoral victory. How else does one explain Khalistan ideologue Simranjit Singh Mann’s victory in the Sangrur Lok Sabha bypoll where he managed to corner 35 percent of the vote share.

Singh’s statements expressing disbelief of sorts in the Constitution, his ambiguity on being referred as an Indian, and his open challenge to the State may lead to disquieting times. The State may face consequences for soft paddling the issue. The volatility of the state on sensitive issues cannot be ignored. Talking to Deccan Herald, political analyst and veteran journalist Jagtar Singh said, “It [Khalistan narrative] never died. It would be too simple to read the developments as an effort towards polarisation. I have covered the era of militancy in Punjab and can see some similarities between then and now. It’s a matter of concern that Punjab is still fertile ground for such activities.”

What is unfolding in Punjab cannot be seen in isolation of what is happening overseas where a section of the Sikh diaspora supports the demand for Khalistan. Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), a US-based secessionist group founded by Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, is spearheading a ‘referendum on Khalistan’. After Canada and other countries, the referendum was held in Canberra in Australia in January. The vote led to clashes between pro-Khalistani and pro-Indian groups.

Timeline of Turbulence

The origins of the demand for a separate Sikh homeland can be
traced back to the time of Independence.

April 13, 1978: Clashes between traditional Sikhs and followers of the Sant Nirankari Mission, 16 people killed. A decade of violence starts in Punjab.

April, 1981: Ganga Singh Dhillon, based in the US, raises demand for Khalistan

August 4, 1982: With support from the Akali Dal, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale launches the Dharma Yudh Morcha. Violence against Hindus and government officials increases.

1984 June 1: The Indian Army launches Operation Blue Star to capture armed militants and supporters of Bhindranwale from inside the Golden Temple complex. Bhindranwale is killed on June 6.

October 31: Prime Minister Indira Gandhi is assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards, triggering communal violence in Delhi and several states, resulting in several thousands of Sikhs being killed.

June 23, 1985: Canada-based Sikh militants blow up AI182 over the Atlantic Ocean killing 329 onboard, purportedly to avenge Operation Blue Star. Militancy in Punjab stretches out till the mid-1990s; frequency and intensity of attacks wane out thereafter.

October 14, 2015: Incidents of sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib since 2015 increases tension in Punjab; this further heightens when police fire at protesting Sikhs, killing two people.

2017: In the run up to the elections in Punjab, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal spends a night at the place of a Khalistani ideologue, kicking up a controversy.

October 31, 2021: The Sikhs for Justice launches Referendum 2020 from London to drum up support for secession of ‘Khalistan’ from India.

2022: June 27: Just months after AAP came to power in Punjab, it loses the Sangrur Lok Sabha bypoll to Khalistani ideologue Simranjit Singh Mann.

2023: September 29: At a ceremony held at Bhindranwale’s native place, Amritpal Singh, 30, who had returned from Dubai to Punjab a few months back, is appointed the head of Waris Panjab De. Amritpal’s views on Khalistan garners massive appeal and support among the youths.

October 30: Amritpal initiates over 1,000 people into the Sikh faith.

2023 February 23: Amritpal’s supporters storm a police station in Punjab’s Ajnala seeking release of
one of his aides, injure several cops.

2021-2023: A series of incidents of vandalism by pro-Khalistan activists on statues of Mahatma Gandhi & Hindu temples in the US, Canada and Australia.

(The writer is a journalist based in Chandigarh)