Akal Takht justifies pro-Khalistan slogans on Op Bluestar anniversary
COMMUNITY HAS ALREADY RECOGNISED OP BLUESTAR AS ANOTHER ‘GHALLUGHARA
Akal Takht acting jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh on Sunday justified pro-Khalistan slogans, stating that Sikhs reduce their pain by uttering “Khalistan Zindabad” on the anniversary of Operation Bluestar in Amritsar.
“This is a deep wound on Sikhs, which gives pain throughout the year. On its anniversary, we reduce this pain by uttering ‘Khalistan Zindabad’. It can never be forgotten. It will be part of our memory forever,” Singh said, amid echoes of slogans during his address from the highest temporal seat of Sikhs on the 37th anniversary of the military action at Golden Temple.
Even during his address last year, Singh had stated that every Sikh wanted Khalistan and if the government offers them the formation of a separate nation, “they will accept it happily”.
“The Indian Army attacked Akal Takht just like it battled against China and Pakistan during wars... the treatment given to Sikhs was more oppressive and brutal than one given... to the losing side in a battle,” he said. “The community has already recognised Operation Bluestar as another ‘ghallughara’ (holocaust),” he said.
Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur endorsed the jathedar’s views on slogans
SGPC to initiate damages suit talks with Centre
Meanwhile, the SGPC is set to begin negotiations with the Union government for out-ofcourt settlement of ₹1,000-crore damages suit related to Operation Bluestar, immediately after the 37th anniversary of the military action at Golden Temple.
The suit was filed by the SGPC, under its then president Gurcharan Singh Tohra, in the Delhi high court in March 1985. Thirty-six years on, it is still pending. On the court’s order, both sides — Centre and SGPC — are ready to resolve the dispute out of court since 2019, but no meeting has been held so far. “The matter, which came to a standstill due to the pandemic, was discussed in our last executive committee meeting held on June 2,” said Bhagwant Singh Sialka, an advocate and general secretary of the SGPC.