Bid to revive insurgency in Punjab, says army chief

Says situation cannot be dealt with military force; govt, civil admn, army, police must work in tandem

Attempts are being made through “external linkages” to “revive insurgency” in Punjab, army chief Gen Bipin Rawat said on Saturday.

NEW DELHI: Attempts are being made through “external linkages” to “revive insurgency” in Punjab and if early action is not taken, it will be too late, army chief Gen Bipin Rawat said on Saturday.

He was addressing a gathering of senior army officers, defence experts and former senior officials of the government and police at a seminar here on “Changing Contours of Internal Security in India: Trends and Responses”.

Rawat also said that attempts were being made again through “external linkages” and “external abetment” to revive insurgency in Assam.

“Punjab has been peaceful but because of these external linkages, attempts again are being made to revive insurgency in the state,” he said, adding: “We have to be very careful. Let us not think that Punjab (situation) is over. We cannot close our eyes to what is happening in Punjab. And, if we do not take early action now, it will be too late,” he said.

Punjab saw one of the worst phases of insurgencies in the 1980s during the pro-Khalistan movement which was eventually quelled by the government.

In a panel discussion, former Uttar Pradesh DGP Prakash Singh also highlighted the issue and said “attempts were being to revive insurgency” in Punjab. He referred to a pro-Khalistan rally organised recently in the UK aiming for “Referendum 2020”.

Hundreds of people had turned out at Trafalgar Square in London on August 12 in support of a pro-Khalistan rally as well as to counter the event with an Independence Day celebrations.

US-based pro-Khalistan group Sikhs for Justice had said its rally was intended to raise awareness for a non-binding referendum in 2020, calling for Punjab to be granted independence.

The “We Stand With India” and “Love My India” events were organised by Indian diaspora groups as a reaction to the pro-Khalistan “London Declaration for a Referendum 2020”.

Internal security is one of the biggest problems in the country, but question is “why we have not been able to find a solution, because it has external linkages,” Gen Rawat said.

The event was organised by defence think-tank CLAWS (Centre for Land and Warfare Studies). Rawat is its patron.

Asserting that insurgency cannot be dealt with military force, he pitched for adopting an approach in which all agencies, the government, civil administration, military and police work in an “integrated manner”.

Let’s not think that Punjab (situation) is over. We cannot close our eyes to what is happening in Punjab. And, if we do not take early action now, it will be too late. GEN BIPIN RAWAT , army chief